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Gavaskar criticized Messi for leaving the Kolkata fan occasion early, blaming Messi and his entourage for disappointing followers and sparking chaos, whereas defending the organisers.
Gavaskar got here to the help of the organisers, and lambasted Messi (X)
In an unexpected flip of occasions, Sunil Gavaskar has thrown the highlight straight at Lionel Messi over the chaos that erupted through the Argentine star’s Kolkata go to, accusing the World Cup winner of failing to honour his dedication to followers.
Messi, together with Luis Suarez and Rodrigo De Paul, arrived at Salt Lake Stadium on December 13 for what was billed as a two-hour fan occasion. As an alternative, the looks ended abruptly for causes by no means made public, leaving hundreds of ticket-paying followers with out a lot as a correct glimpse of their hero.
The fallout was ugly. Offended supporters turned violent exterior the venue, Kolkata police arrested tour organiser Satadru Dutta, and blame was shortly shifted to politicians and VIPs crowding round Messi. Gavaskar, nevertheless, isn’t shopping for it.
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Writing in Sportstar, the previous India captain argued that if Messi had agreed to remain for a set time however left early, accountability should lie with him and his entourage.
“Everybody was blamed besides the one that did not honour his dedication,” Gavaskar wrote.
“What the settlement was isn’t public, but when he was meant to be there for an hour and left properly earlier than that, then the true wrongdoer was he and his entourage.”
Gavaskar additionally brushed apart claims of safety issues, insisting Messi confronted no actual risk and will have accomplished one thing so simple as strolling the bottom or taking a penalty.
“Sure, he was surrounded by politicians and so-called VIPs, however there was no safety risk to him or his entourage,” he wrote.
“Was he supposed to easily stroll across the stadium, or do one thing tangible like take a penalty kick? If it have been the latter, these round him would routinely have needed to transfer, and the group would have seen their hero do what they’d come to observe.”
The 75-year-old additionally defended the organisers, mentioning that Messi’s appearances in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi went off with out a hitch.
“The opposite appearances went easily as a result of commitments have been met,” Gavaskar added.
“So earlier than blaming fellow Indians in Kolkata, it’s value checking whether or not guarantees on either side have been really stored.”
Click on right here so as to add News18 as your most popular information supply on Google. December 16, 2025, 08:28 IST
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