Otamendi snubs Rodri, ex-Benfica fires back: crying all week | OneFootball

Nicolás Otamendi was once again involved in a controversial moment, this time after the final between Spain and Argentina. The former Benfica captain got into a heated exchange with Rodri immediately after the final whistle, refusing to shake hands with the Spanish midfielder and accusing the opposing national team of putting pressure on the referees all week. Broadcast footage captured the moment, which quickly went viral on social media.

After the match ended, Rodri approached Otamendi to greet him, but was met with an unexpected reaction from the Argentine international. Visibly angry, the centre-back refused the Spaniard’s gesture and responded harshly.

"Start talking less, idiot. You spent the whole week crying. You and Laporte, both of you. You don’t do that. You spent the whole week complaining about the refereeing," Otamendi fired back. The moment came just seconds after another clash on the pitch involving several players from both teams, including Leandro Paredes, Gavi and Eric García.

Otamendi’s words came in response to statements made by Rodri before the final, in which the Spanish midfielder criticised the refereeing in the tournament. After the semi-final against France, the Spain international expressed his dissatisfaction with the referees’ standard, especially regarding the protection given to Lamine Yamal.

"For three games we’ve been dealing with this situation. We’re talking about more than 10 or 15 fouls that aren’t being called. If the referee doesn’t blow the whistle, the defenders keep doing the same thing. The leniency is obvious," Rodri said in comments to the newspaper As. Otamendi interpreted those criticisms as an attempt to influence the refereeing, which is why he did not hide his irritation after the match and left Rodri speechless during the greeting.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.