Was Lionel Messi punched outside of a restaurant? Is it much ado about nothing? The soccer superstar decided to speak out after the story gained steam in news outlets and on social media platforms.
Fresh off of Barcelona's outclassing of Manchester United in the Champion's League final, Messi returned to Argentina for a little R & R. The soccer icon was signing autographs outside a restaurant in his home city of Rosario when a youth in the crowd aimed a punch at him, according to published reports.
"There was a crush of people waiting outside," Pablo Moyano, who was working in the restaurant, told the Associated Press. "There were kids, reporters, photographers waiting ... and one of the kids tried to punch him. I don't know if he pulled it off. He went running afterward."
Argentine media reported that Messi's aggressor was a fan of Rosario Central, arch-rivals of Newell's Old Boys, where the 23-year-old began his career before moving to Spain, according to ESPN.
The uncertainty of what exactly happened outside the restaurant led to a crush of speculation on Twitter as fans took to the popular micro-blog to sound off.
