The extremely hot match between Argentina and Brazil, Messi and Neymar had to admit defeat

Raphinha's challenge could easily spark revenge between Argentina fans and Brazil

One of them was striker Raphinha, who has been playing brilliantly since replacing Neymar in the Brazilian national team, declaring: "I don't care about them! I will score. We will beat and destroy them (the Argentine national team) on the pitch, and if necessary, off the pitch too." This declaration of war immediately made Messi's juniors angry.

Raphinha causes tension ahead of Brazil-Argentina clash

Many Argentine players criticized Raphinha for being too arrogant and underestimating his opponents. Veteran striker Di Maria, who has since retired from the Argentina national team but still plays for Benfica, responded to Raphinha's comments with just three tearful smiley faces in a sarcastic post on Instagram.

Di Maria was the one who scored the only goal to help Argentina defeat Brazil 1-0 in the 2021 Copa America final at the legendary Maracana stadium. This famous player continued to contribute to the Albiceleste's second consecutive Copa America championship, in 2024 in the United States.

Meanwhile, the Brazilian team had to witness its rival continuously winning the championship, not only in the Copa America, but also in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. At this stage, the confrontations between the Brazilian and Argentine teams took place relatively peacefully with the confrontations only on the field, partly thanks to the prestige of Messi and Neymar, who are close friends, so it somewhat limited the provocation leading to fights in the stands between fans of both sides.

There was only one incident when Brazilian security personnel reacted too harshly to Argentine fans, allegedly causing chaos in the stands, injuring many people during the first leg meeting between the two teams, also at the Maracana Stadium, in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in November 2023.

The incident happened before the match, when Messi led his teammates off the field and had to return to the game nearly 30 minutes later. In the end, the Argentine team won 1-0 with Otamendi scoring the only goal.

Argentina only needs to draw with Brazil to officially get a ticket to the 2026 World Cup finals.

The rematch between Argentina and Brazil this time took place in Buenos Aires at the Monumental Stadium. Raphinha's provocation, although showing his determination to defeat his opponent, used very strong words and was considered very aggressive, causing people to worry that the match would take place in a hostile atmosphere.

Not to mention, it could also spark a revenge attack by Argentina fans against Brazil. This is something that neither Messi nor Neymar want to happen. They can accept a ruthless confrontation on the pitch between the players of the two teams, but not a bloody confrontation in the stands between the fans.

Argentina coach Scaloni also expressed concern about Raphinha's hateful remarks. He said: "The match between Argentina and Brazil is an important match. But it is still just a football match. It should not go further than that. I remember the image of Messi and Neymar after the 2021 Copa America final, both standing on the steps of the Maracana stadium in a friendly manner, even though they had just competed fiercely on the pitch.

And that's the image we should have of our rivalry. The best in the world, and the person who was probably the second best at the time, they're friends. Both teams want to win. We're very determined on the pitch, but off the pitch we're friends. We all have Brazilians and Argentines. So it shouldn't go any further than that."

In the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in South America, Argentina is leading the group with 28 points after 13 matches, they only need to draw with Brazil to officially get a ticket to the final round 4 rounds early. Meanwhile, Brazil is ranked 3rd with 21 points, also holding a ticket to the US, Mexico and Canada in 2026.

But regardless, the match between the two teams is always heated, there must be a winner and a loser, truly a South American derby.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/cuc-nong-tran-dai-chien-argentina-dau-brazil-messi-va-neymar-phai-chao-thua-185250325140423119.htm