Chinese footie fans brand Messi a ‘thief’ for no-showing a friendly game – and taunt the Argentine over the Falklands

CHINESE footie fans have slammed Lionel Messi for a no-show — and taunted him over the Falklands.

The Argentine legend sparked anger after failing to play for Inter Miami in a Hong Kong exhibition game this month.

Footie fans were angered when Lionel Messi failed to show up at Inter Miami’s exhibition game in Hong KongAFP – Getty

Fans in mainland China took to social media site Weibo to voice their support for Britain’s claim to the Falklands in the wake of Messi’s snubGetty

Club officials blamed a hamstring injury but days later Messi played in China’s rival Japan.

Fans in mainland China saw it as a major snub and started targeting the social media account of the Argentinian embassy in Beijing.

They blasted Messi, 36, and hailed British rule over the Falkands using the same terms the Communist Party uses for its claim that Taiwan is part of China.

Landi Xie wrote: “The Falklands are an integral and inseparable part of the United Kingdom.”

One user of Weibo – the Chinese equivalent of X/Twitter – said: “The fact that the islands belong to Britain is beyond doubt.

“Messi is a thief. All his Ballon d’Or awards were stolen.”

Another – using the name for the Falklands in Spanish – referred to the 1982 war and said: “The Malvinas Islands are part of the UK.

“They were before, they are now, and of course, they will always be in the future.

“Your country doesn’t have the capability to take them back either.”

What is the Falkland Islands dispute?

The Falklands are a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic.

The UK Government says it has the right to the land based on its long-term administration of the Falklands and on the principle of self-determination for the islanders, who are almost all of British descent.

In a referendum on the islands in 2013 just three residents out of 1,517 were against remaining British.

However, Argentina says it has a right to the islands because it inherited them from the Spanish Empire.

It has also based its claim on the islands’ proximity to the South American mainland.

In 1982, Argentina’s military junta landed its forces on the Falklands to stake a territorial claim.

Some 255 British service personnel died in the successful defence of the islands.

The 72-day war also left 649 Argentine soldiers dead.

Britain has tried to improve relations with Argentina since the war, although Argentina continues to claim sovereignty over the islands.