Aguero, Fabregas rush to Messi's defence after Mexican boxer's threat to Argentine captain

Lionel Messi once again came to Argentina's rescue with a stunning strike in their FIFA World Cup 2022 win vs Mexico. The result not only prevented an early exit for the CONMEBOL side, and put them in a better position for contention to Round of 16. While everyone was praising the PSG star for his role in the 2-0 win, Mexican boxer Saul "Canelo" Alvarez saw something which angered him. A video went viral after the match which showed the Argentina players celebrating in the dressing room and the boxer spotted Messi putting his foot on a Mexican jersey and flag.

Taking to Twitter, he wrote, "Saw Messi cleaning floor with our jersey and flag? He should ask god that I don't find him."

Rushing to Messi's defence, his former teammates Sergio Aguero and Cesc Fabregas criticised the Mexican boxer. Replying to his tweet, Aguero explained that after every match, players put their jerseys on the floor due to sweat and for washing. The former Manchester City man also pointed out that Messi's boot accidentally touched the jersey. "Mr. Canelo, don't look for excuses or problems, surely you don't know about soccer and what happens in a locker room. The shirts are always on the floor after the games are over due to sweat and then if you see well, he makes the movement to remove the boot and accidentally hits it", Aguero stated.

Reacting to Aguero's tweet, Canelo had a rather abusive message for the former player and called him a hypocrite. Aguero had a simple response and wrote, "I admired you Mr. Canelo. But what you did today with Messi was a low blow. And you know better than anyone that this is unfair. Disqualified".

Meanwhile, 2010 World Cup winner Fabregas also had a similar message for the boxer. The Spaniard tweeted, "You neither know the person, nor do you understand how a locker room works or what happens after a game. ALL t-shirts, even the ones we wear ourselves, go on the floor and are washed afterwards. And more when you celebrate an important victory."

Alvarez also got into a Twitter argument with his countryman Miguel Layun, who is also a Mexican footballer. Layun wrote, "Brother, you have always defended Mexico like few others, you have made millions of us feel proud. I share my opinion We leave the shirts on the floor because they are sweaty and they usually take them to wash before handing them over, he takes off his shoe and touches the shirt, just that."

Angered by Layun's tweet, the boxer shared a screenshot of the duo's WhatsApp conversation, where they discussed Mexico's World Cup campaign.

Argentina began their World Cup campaign with a 1-2 defeat vs Saudi Arabia, but bounced back to winning ways vs Mexico. Still in contention for the Round of 16, Argentina face Group C leaders Poland in their final fixture, before knockouts. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia also face Mexico at the Lusail Stadium. None of the sides have qualified for the knockouts from Group C, with Poland sitting on top with four points, followed by Argentina with three. Saudi Arabia are third with three points but a lower goal difference than Lionel Messi and Co. Meanwhile, Mexico are bottom of the table with one point, but are still in contention for the next round.