De Paul: Messi Told Us Not to Mock Opponents; Enzo’s Club Teammates Are Maliciously Showboating

The incident involving alleged discrimination by Argentine players against French players continues to escalate, forming two starkly opposing factions. On one side, criticism of Enzo and the Argentine national team is growing louder; on the other hand, support is also steadily increasing, with Argentine midfielder De Paul becoming one of the latest supporters.

De Paul emphasized that immediately after Argentina’s victory celebrations, Messi conveyed an important message to the entire team: “Don’t mock anyone, let’s celebrate our victory and enjoy this joy to the fullest.”

In his view, the outside criticism is merely the losers looking for excuses. “They always find reasons to attack the winners, whether it’s accusing us of gaining unfair advantages, claiming we insulted opponents, questioning our strength, or asserting that South American football falls short of European standards. When faced with these baseless accusations, there is actually no real controversy. Everything is aimed at belittling our achievements.”

De Paul firmly stands by Enzo: “I understand why those who have experienced racism might be angry. However, if any of Enzo’s teammates felt offended, the most appropriate course of action would have been to address it privately rather than making it public. I believe there is malice involved here, they are trying to twist the situation, which is very inappropriate, like kicking someone when they’re down.”

Argentine midfield mainstay McAllister also expressed his support for Enzo, stating, “There’s nothing more to say about it. We know Enzo, and we know he meant no harm; it was just a popular song, a light-hearted joke. The key point is that Enzo has already apologized and explained the situation, and that should be the end of it.” Through these remarks, McAllister hopes the controversy will subside and allow the team to continue focusing on football.