Nicolas Otamendi's surprising statements on the France-Argentina match

After Argentina was eliminated from the Olympic Games by the French team, tensions flared between the players of both teams. France won the match 1-0 thanks to an early goal by Jean-Philippe Mateta (5th minute), thus qualifying for the semi-finals. However, the end of the match was marked by palpable tension.

The context was already charged after the racist chants of the Argentinian fans during their team's victory in the Copa America in mid-July. The French, led by Thierry Henry, raised the tension by celebrating their victory in a provocative manner. Enzo Millot even received a red card after the final whistle, which annoyed his coach. A general altercation broke out, with French players celebrating their victory in front of the Argentinian fans' stand.

This provocation was not well received by some Argentinians. Nicolas Otamendi, furious in a press conference, criticized the behavior of the French. “It makes me very angry. They can party, do whatever they want, but going to where the fans and their families are, that's not the right way to do it,” he said. The Argentinian defender particularly targeted Loïc Badé, accusing him of exaggerating. “If he wants to party, let him come directly to where we are and we'll sort it out. We'll talk about everything we have to talk about. It makes me angry. It's not right. The truth is, it makes me angry,” he added.

Gerónimo Rulli, former Montpellier goalkeeper, also expressed his discontent. “Sometimes there are players who don't know how to win and this is what happens. It was completely avoidable, it's not a good image for anyone. As Argentines, we know that when we win, we celebrate with our people and when we lose, we congratulate our opponents and go home. The truth is that some players don't know how to do that. We had nothing to reproach ourselves for.”

The dispute between the two teams seems far from being resolved.