(Atlanta) Quebecer Moïse Bombito was the target of racist attacks on social networks from Argentine fans after the Albiceleste match against Canada on Thursday evening.
At the source of this hatred – we talk about N-words, photos of monkeys – is a tackle on Lionel Messi, in the 82nd minute of the first Copa América match, played in Atlanta.
Bombito touched the ball first, sending it far out of the Argentinian’s reach, before making solid contact with it. Messi continued the action, then lay on the ground for a few moments after Maxime Crépeau’s subsequent save. He finished the game with no apparent issues, and no fouls were called on the play.
Canada Soccer denounced the attacks against its player, publishing a press release overnight.
“Canada Soccer is aware and deeply troubled by the racist comments made online and directed towards one of our men’s national team players following tonight’s match. We are in contact with CONCACAF and CONMEBOL on this matter. »
To dispel any doubts about the identity of this player, Bombito submitted this concise message to his Instagram story: “My beautiful Canada. There’s no room for that BS.”
CONCACAF also confirmed that it was “joining” Canada Soccer in “condemning the hateful messages posted on social media against Moïse Bombito.”
“Racism has no place in our sport or in society,” added the confederation, which said it was “working” with CONMEBOL and FIFA to “find ways to investigate the accounts” that were responsible for the “racist material.”
Bombito, a central defender, is currently experiencing the beginnings of his international career, while he is blossoming both with Canada and with the Colorado Rapids, in MLS. Some rumors are already sending him to Europe, if he continues to put on good performances for the maple leaf, especially at this Copa.
At 24, after a winding path to the professionals, here he is, coach Jesse Marsch’s trusted man in defense, and he didn’t look bad at all in front of the world champions on Thursday evening.
We told you earlier this week about the natural pitch installed in a hurry on top of the usual synthetic at Mercedes-Benz Stadium since last Saturday’s MLS match. On Wednesday, on the eve of the Argentina-Canada confrontation, the two teams were supposed to familiarize themselves with the field. But the activity was canceled, probably to protect the surface as much as possible.
Result: the first time the players were able to test the pitch was in the pre-match warm-up. After the match, both teams were critical of the playing surface.
“The pitch was a disaster,” said Emiliano Martinez, comments reported by the Associated Press. It looked like a springboard, with a bouncing ball. They must correct the situation. Otherwise, the Copa América will always be at a lower level than the Euro. »
“Lucky we won,” added Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni. Otherwise, it would have been a very poor excuse. […] They knew for seven months that we were going to play here, and they installed the surface a few days ago. It’s not an excuse, but it wasn’t good ground. He was unfit for these players. »
In Canada too, we complained about it.
“It felt like we were walking on a stage, like it was hollow,” said defenseman Kamal Miller.
Maxime Crépeau’s brilliance was widely reported on Thursday evening. But there is a quote from Jesse Marsch that did not find its way into our match report. CF Montreal fans will likely be interested.
We asked the coach about his goalkeeper’s recent performances, which come two years after breaking his leg in the MLS Cup final. But Marsch takes us even further.
“I know Max well,” he said at a press conference. I was with the Montreal Impact when they signed his first professional contract at 18. He was a mature guy, at 18 years old. »
After checking, the dates do not perfectly match: Marsch left the club in November 2012, and Crépeau signed his agreement in March 2013. But we understand that he had an impact in his path towards the pact.
“And now he is 30 years old, a family, children,” continues the American. And you can see he has become a man. Even after the first conversation I had with him, I was happy to notice how much he had grown. Through all the challenges people experience, the key is to emerge stronger. »
And to think that Rémi Garde and the Impact parted ways with Maxime Crépeau, a player trained at the club with far from fulfilled potential, for the meager sum of $50,000 in targeted allocation money.
With all that, despite encouraging performances, it’s still three games without a goal under Jesse Marsch. But the technician doesn’t worry too much, he says, because of the opportunities his team creates.
Davies, Eustáquio, David and Larin all had the ball in a good position on Thursday, failing either to get on target or to thwart the excellent Emiliano Martinez in front of the Argentinian cage.
The entry of Jacob Shaffelburg in the 59th, replacing Tajon Buchanan who was not very decisive on the right wing, on the other hand “moved the needle” offensively for Canada, according to the coach.
“I know that over time, when we have chances of this quality, we will end up scoring enough goals. We have enough talent on the field for that. We must instead focus on the details, to be more precise, more tactically clean, and not offer such easy opportunities [to the opponent].
And Marsch added: “We are still a young team in development, and we want to make sure we learn from our mistakes, avoid being naive. We grow up. »
Last note, in closing. For those wondering, it was Canada captain Alphonso Davies who exchanged jerseys with Lionel Messi on Thursday evening. Nice collector’s item, nonetheless.