England’s Jude Bellingham lost his temper after losing to Argentina in the FIFA World Cup semi-finals. In frustration, he slapped Argentinian player Valentin Barco, following which a scuffle broke out between the two teams on the field.
Atlanta: After England’s defeat at the hands of Argentina in the FIFA World Cup semi-finals, the Atlanta stadium became a battlefield. In frustration of the defeat, England’s star midfielder Jude Bellingham lost his temper and slapped Argentina’s young player Valentin Barco on the head. The video of the altercation and scuffle that took place between the players of both the teams after the match is now going viral on social media.
Bellingham, who was a hero for England throughout the tournament, could not penetrate Argentina’s defense in this match. In the last seven minutes of the match, Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martínez scored goals on magical assists from Lionel Messi to give Argentina an incredible victory. After this, Bellingham’s temper rose. The incident happened just after the referee’s final whistle. Dejected by the defeat, Bellingham was standing alone on the field when an Argentinian player consoled him. But soon after, Valentin Barko reached out to Bellingham for a group hug with his teammates. It is being said that during this time, Barco said something provocative after seeing Bellingham, which enraged the Real Madrid star player.
Bellingham, who was in great form after scoring 6 goals in this World Cup, angrily slapped Barco on the back of the head. After this Barco also pushed Bellingham. Before things could get any worse, other players from both teams immediately intervened and separated the two.
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After the match, Bellingham said emotionally, “It’s a very sad day for us and the England fans. We played well, fought till the end, but it was not enough to win.” England coach Thomas Tuchel is being heavily criticized on social media for his strategy of focusing only on defense in the last moments of the match after taking a one-goal lead. However, the German coach rejected these criticisms.
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Thomas Tuchel said, “In previous matches I have made attacking changes, here I was trying to help the players. After conceding goals I saw big shortcomings in defence, so I decided to play with five defenders. When the team loses it is easy to blame the coach. I take full responsibility for the defeat.”
Despite the defeat in the semi-finals, England still has one match left in the World Cup. England will face France in the match for third place on Saturday. Meanwhile, there are also reports that FIFA may take action against Argentina players for their comments regarding the Falkland Islands after winning the semi-final.