Soccer player Lionel Messi has responded to the recent backlash in China following his absence from a game in Hong Kong but his message will not be enough to repair his image in the country, its state media has said.
The Argentinian star missed a game with his Major League Soccer (MLS) club Inter Miami against a local team in Hong Kong on February 4 because of an inflamed adductor.
Hong Kong's local government criticized the forward for not interacting at all with spectators, who called for a refund.
Messi then further angered Chinese fans by appearing in Tokyo for a friendly game just three days later.
On Monday, Messi tried to set the record straight by sharing a video message from his official account on Chinese social media platform Weibo.
"As I said in the press conference, I had an inflamed adductor and I couldn't play in the first game in Saudi Arabia. On the day before the match (in Hong Kong) I tried to train and made an effort for all those who'd come to watch training. I did all I could," Messi said.
He added: "I've heard people say that I didn't want to play for political reasons and many other reasons that are totally untrue. If that were the case, I wouldn't have even traveled to Japan or visited China, as I have many times. Since the start of my career, I've had a very close and special relationship with China."
Following the video's release, the hashtag "Messi's response" became the number one trending topic on Weibo and was viewed over 820 million times.
Despite that and his message garnering over 637,000 likes and over 62,000 comments, state media outlet China Daily said Messi will not easily repair his reputation.
"Soccer star Lionel Messi's belated explanation for his no-show at a recent exhibition game in Hong Kong seems to not be enough to redeem his broken image in China, as experts call for more transparent communication regarding such incidents," China Daily reported on Wednesday.
Local soccer authorities in Beijing and Hangzhou recently announced the cancellation of two upcoming Argentina games, where Messi would have been expected to make an appearance for his national team.
Pui Kwan Kay, the president of the Hong Kong Football Association, recently criticized Messi for not appearing at the February 4 match.
"Even if he were injured, he should still interact with the sports fans after [the] competition ended. Dissatisfaction could have been easily dispelled if he had just said 'sorry.' But he didn't even make the effort. How do you think the 38,000 fans at the stadium and those watching on TV perceived his actions?" Pui told the Chinese nationalist outlet Global Times.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Aadil Brar is a reporter for Newsweek based in Taipei, Taiwan. He covers international security, U.S.-China relations, and East Asian ... Read more
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