“He began showing signs of irritation, lost his cool” - Ex-India international reveals what happened with Lionel Messi at chaotic Kolkata tour

Former Indian midfielder Lakamal Bhowmick has lifted the lid on what led to Lionel Messi’s brief appearance at the Salt Lake Stadium during his GOAT Tour stop in Kolkata, which later descended into chaos.

Messi’s three-day GOAT Tour of India got off to a miserable start as chaos engulfed the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday, December 13, after his much-anticipated appearance lasted for only 22 minutes. Expectant fans gathered at the stadium, but they realized they could hardly see the Argentine legend, and unrest ensued.

Bhowmick, who took part in the exhibition match as part of the program, told Sports Now that Messi became ‘visibly uncomfortable’ after fans breached security and began encroaching on him.

“Everything was going fine at the start as Messi walked into the stadium. He seemed relaxed, smiling, and shaking hands with all of us. He even gave autographs without hesitation,” Bhowmick said. “The moment too many people rushed onto the field and started clicking pictures, he became visibly uncomfortable.”

“It got overcrowded very quickly, and we could see his reaction change as everyone around him started clicking pictures. He began showing signs of irritation, lost his cool, and everything went out of control.”

Lakamal Bhowmick also added that Lionel Messi’s security team, including Rodrigo de Paul and Luis Suarez, were unhappy with the mismanagement. Bhowmick claimed the disorderliness ultimately led to the event being cut short.

After the chaos died down, Satadru Dutta, the organizer of the Messi GOAT Tour, was arrested at the Netaji Subhas Bose International Airport as he was about to leave Kolkata and was sent to 14-day police custody. According to a report in The Times of India, Dutta denied responsibility for the disruption at the stadium and gave assurances that spectators would be refunded.

Hyderabad provides relishing experience for Lionel Messi after Kolkata chaos

Lionel Messi headed to Hyderabad the same day for the second leg of his GOAT Tour to play a 7v7 exhibition match with Telangana chief minister Revanth Reddy. The experience there was very much refined as opposed to the disorder seen earlier in Kolkata.

As the event in Hyderabad drew to a close, Messi thanked the buzzing fans, and his teammates Suarez and De Paul did the same. Next on Messi's itinerary for his GOAT India tour was Mumbai, which he visited on Sunday before he headed to Delhi on Monday.