Kolkata: Argentina football legend Lionel Messi released a commemorative video of his ‘GOAT India Tour’ on Wednesday, notably excluding any footage of his appearance at Kolkata’s Yuba Bharati Krirangan (Salt Lake Stadium).
The omission comes amid a backdrop of administrative mismanagement and fan unrest during the Kolkata leg of the tour, which was marred by mismanagement resulting in fans’ outrage and the arrest of the event organiser.
The video, shared on Messi’s official Instagram account, includes only one event from Kolkata, the unveiling of Messi’s statue at Lake Town. There are no visuals from Yuva Bharati Krirangan. The rest of the video is dominated by scenes from Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi. It shows Messi playing football with Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy at the Hyderabad stadium, interacting with children, kicking the ball into the stands and waving to spectators.
The video also carries moments of Messi interacting with Sachin Tendulkar at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, along with visuals of him engaging with children and the crowd. Brief clips from the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi are also part of the montage. Messi is seen alongside Luis Suárez and Rodrigo De Paul, all smiling through the tour. Apart from on-field moments, the video includes events outside the stadium, such as Messi’s participation in the ‘Paddle Cup’ at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai and photographs with actor Kareena Kapoor Khan.
During his visit to Kolkata, Messi met several prominent personalities. State minister Aroop Biswas was seen accompanying him at Yuva Bharati Krirangan, but neither the minister nor the stadium event features in the video. In contrast, some industrialists appear in the montage.
Although Yuva Bharati Krirangan does not find a place in the visuals, Messi did mention Kolkata in the caption.
He wrote, “Namaste India! What incredible visits to Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kolkata. Thanks for the warm welcome, great hospitality and all the expressions of love throughout my tour. I hope football has a bright future in India! #GOATTourIndia #GOATconcert #Messiinlndia A Satadru Dutta Initiative.”
While Kolkata received a brief mention in the caption, the Yuva Bharati event was entirely left out of the video. Notably, Messi retained the name of Satadru Dutta, the main organiser of the tour, in the caption, despite Dutta’s arrest.
Messi also shared a message reflecting on his visit to India.
He said, “First of all, thank you to India for the love I have received over the past few days. It was a wonderful experience. This trip was very short, but the love I received has removed all my fatigue.”
He added, “I knew I would receive love, but I didn’t realise how much. Everyone loved me like crazy. I am returning home with this experience. I hope that one day we will play in India. But even if we don’t play, I will definitely come to India. Thank you, everyone.”
On December 13, the Salt Lake Stadium was packed well before the scheduled start of Messi’s event, with thousands of fans waiting to catch a glimpse of the great footballer. As Messi arrived, a large crowd surrounded him, trying to take photographs, while security personnel struggled to control the situation. Spectators later complained that many could not see Messi at all. He left the field after about 22 minutes.
Following his departure, chaos broke out at the stadium. Chairs and bottles were thrown onto the field, several spectators broke open gates to enter the playing area, and vandalism was reported in the galleries and restrooms of Yuva Bharati Krirangan.
In the aftermath, the state government constituted an inquiry committee. Event organiser Satadru Dutta was arrested, while on Tuesday, Aroop Biswas resigned from his post as state Sports Minister. Senior IPS officers, including Director General of Police Rajeev Kumar, were also issued show-cause notices.
(IANS)
