Oh yeah you read that right!
"Barcelona have leapt to the defense of Lionel Messi after he was accused of racially abusing Royston Drenthe while the midfielder was on loan with Everton several seasons ago. Drenthe, who is spending the season at Goodison Park on a temporary deal from Real Madrid, claimed in Holland's Helden magazine that he was taunted by the Argentina superstar when they met in the Primera Division.
But Barca have insisted the accusations were "well wide of the mark".
When quizzed on the issue by Press Association Sport, a Barca spokesman said: "The player has always shown a maximum respect and sportsmanship towards his rivals, something which has been recognized by his fellow professionals many times, and we are sure that any accusations to the contrary are well wide of the mark. "His behavior throughout his career has always been exemplary." " (via foxsoccer.com)
Now I can't sit here and say "Of course he's not a racist!" However Messi is not a guy who is known for starting problems. (I'm looking at you John Terry....) Hell he's not even known for being a rough player on the field so I have a little trouble buying into Drenthe's claim. If someone goes so far as to racially abusing you (especially someone as high profile as Messi) why would you wait a few years to bring this up? Again I'm not saying that Messi didn't do this but Drenthe's accusations don't really add up to me.
Jay N
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