Messi’s dangerous tackle sparks debate after hattrick hero escapes a red card
Former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha has insisted that Argentine hero Lionel Messi should have been sent off in the 3-1 win over Algeria on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in Kansas City.
The Argentine planted his studs straight into Aïssa Mandi’s leg from behind thirty minutes into the game. The reckless incident came moments after he sparked the South American cruise with his 16th goal of the tournament.
You might also like
Messi, who finished the game on a hat-trick, became the oldest player to score multiple goals in a FIFA World Cup match, breaking the record set by Roger Milla in 199
For his troubles, the attacker did not even pick up a yellow card in what has gone down as a major talking point of the game, where he scored a record-breaking hat-trick.
Missed moment
“I feel that the moment was missed. And I think the referee completely missed it, and it should have been a red card from that. I can understand that, but the video referees seeing it and ruling it as nothing is shocking, and it is worthy of a red card,” he stated in punditry with ESPN.
Onuoha was, however, empathetic with the star’s reaction after the foul.
“You can see Messi had a level of concern for the player when he was on the floor. He knew he had done something that potentially could have caused trouble for Mandy,” he explained.
The incident, which sparked debate over whether big-name players get preferential treatment in games or if it was just a case of a refereeing mistake, attracted widespread sentiments across the globe, with former Egyptian striker Mohamed Aboutrika also adding his view.
“This is a red card, but because it’s Messi, nothing happens,” he told the Nassr Tribune.
The sentiments were echoed further by Alejandro Moreno, who expressed profound dismay with the officials’ laid-back approach to the incident.
“As much as I love Messi, that was reckless. It was a 100 per cent red card: He was breaking someone’s ankle, and it was a 100 percent red card,” the former Venezuela national team player posited while offering punditry services alongside Onuoha.
Moreno also wondered why no action was taken by the video team, who did not even call referee Szymon Marciniak to review the incident.
