Lionel Messi’s doctor, Diego Schwarzstein has said that he wants Argentina to lose all their matches in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Schwarzstein has played a vital role in Messi’s career. After being diagnosed with Growth Hormone Deficiency, Messi was treated by Schwarzstein. Four years after the treatment, Messi was signed by Barcelona.
Before he moved to Spain, Messi gifted his doctor a Newell’s Old Boys shirt with a message that said: “For Diego, with love from Leo Messi.”
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Despite developing into arguably the best player to ever grace a football pitch, Messi hasn’t forgotten about Schwarzstein and has maintained a close relationship with him.
The now Paris Saint Germain star invited Schwarzstein’s son into the Barcelona dressing room a few years ago.
However, despite their relationship, Schwarzstein has admitted that he doesn’t want Argentina to succeed in the World Cup.
In an interview with The Times, he said: “As a football fan, I would like Argentina to be champions. As an Argentine citizen, as a human being, I would like them to lose all three games and be eliminated in the first round. Why? I’m convinced that this obscenely populist government that we have here would use the success of Argentina at the World Cup to cover things up.
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“They could announce the devaluation of the currency on the day that the team play when no one is focused on that.”
Schwarzstein added: “I’ve lived through many crises in this country, but this is the worst," he said. “The data from the government says that to not be poor you have to earn 120,000 Argentine pesos per month (£636). The minimum [monthly] wage is 60,000 pesos, so even those who have work, are poor.”
This comes after the country’s inflation reached a huge 83% under the leadership of Alberto Fernandez and banks are running out of money.
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For the World Cup, Argentina are in Group C alongside Saudi Arabia, Poland and Mexico.
Will Argentina win the World Cup? Only time will tell.
Featured Image Credit: AlamyTopics: Lionel Messi, Argentina, Football World Cup