Lionel Messi lashes out at Argentina Olympics VAR chaos with angry social media post

Lionel Messi fumed on social media after watching Argentina lose their first match at the 2024 Olympics in the most chaotic of circumstances. Morocco won 2-1 in Paris, but only after VAR overturned Argentina's 105th-minute equaliser almost two hours after it was scored.

Wednesday marked a rocky start to the Summer Games and raised questions about whether organizers were ready to stage a safe event in the coming weeks.

Argentina and Morocco kicked off the first day of men's football at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Etienne but a late pitch invasion spoiled the event.

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Soufiane Rahimi gave Morocco the lead in first-half added time with an electric passing move before adding a second goal from the penalty spot in the 49th minute.

Javier Mascherano's team – featuring Copa America winners Geronimo Rulli, Nicolas Otamendi and Julian Alvarez – were surprised by the Atlas Lions.

Giuliano Simeone pulled one back for Argentina in the 68th minute and then hit the woodwork twice as Morocco struggled to maintain their lead.

But in the 15th minute of added time, Cristian Medina thought he had scored a spectacular equaliser after a scrum in front of goal.

The last-minute goal sparked wild scenes in an already heated encounter, with objects being thrown at the Argentinian players, who were also the target of boos.

A frightening pitch invasion broke out after the equaliser, prompting Swedish referee Glenn Nyberg to direct both sets of players down the tunnel to safety.

It was finally announced that play would resume behind closed doors 92 minutes later, with just three minutes left on the clock.

And after both teams returned to the pitch, Nyberg said Medina's goal had been disallowed after VAR detected an offside infringement in the build-up.

The incredible turn of events left the 2004 and 2008 gold medal winners in disbelief, and Morocco held on to their 2-1 lead to go top of Group B.

Messi, the greatest Argentine player of all time, was one of those who expressed his anger on social media, posting a dark image on his Instagram story with the caption: “Insolito”.

The one-word verdict, paired with an embarrassed emoji, translates to “amazing,” which tells you all you need to know about how he felt.

Argentina will next face Iraq on Saturday before finishing their group stage against Ukraine next Tuesday.

Meanwhile, New Zealand and Spain opened their Olympics with wins over Guinea and Uzbekistan, respectively. In Group C, alongside Spain, Egypt and the Dominican Republic drew.