Argentina captain, Lionel Messi, his compatriots under fire for calling sports journalists ‘Ashawo’

“Support the national team, support them to the death because I love Argentina, because it’s an emotion I carry in my heart. And I don’t care what those f*****g journalists say!” the players sang.

This news medium reports that high expectations in the media, often comparing Messi to Late Diego Maradona, have intensified a fraught relationship between Argentina’s national team and the local press.

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But Merlo, on behalf of sports journalists worldwide, took exception to that chant.

Merlo said: “Lionel Messi is undoubtedly the number one in football, the captain of the Argentine national team, who won the World Cup, but for this very reason he should apologise on behalf of the team for the song with which he and his teammates insulted us journalists, all of our category.

“He may be a lauded billionaire, but he has to respect those who have also contributed, with their enthusiasm and no self-interest, to creating his myth.

“In addition to being great players, they should also be role models in life, because they have become rich thanks to everyone.

“It was nice to see him on the pitch with his family, everyone rejoiced with him. But now what would the public and the family members of journalists who have been described as “whores” (“putos periodistas”) by characters who sometimes have dubious behaviours bordering on law, think?

“Among the players, there were also officials of the Argentine federation singing and this is even more serious.

“Let’s hope that some of them realise the offence done and apologise.”