Brazil vs Argentina Football Rivalry: Timeline of Chaos, Fan and Police Clashes, Delayed Kick-off, On-Pitch Scuffles
One of the fiercest rivalries in world football descended into chaos in the early hours of Wednesday morning (GMT) when Argentina narrowly defeated Brazil 1-0 at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro.
Former Manchester City defender Nicolas Otamendi netted the winner for the World Cup champions when he headed in from a corner in the 63rd minute.
The result condemned Brazil to their first ever home World Cup qualifying defeat and their third successive loss under Fernando Diniz.
However, the clash was marred by fighting between fans, police attacking Argentina supporters, a delayed start, a fiery on pitch encounter and post-match scuffles.
Argentina chose to celebrate with the section of their fans who were attacked ahead of kick off
It all began ahead of the game when the players had emerged from the tunnel for the national anthems.
As the Brazilian anthem was being played, rival supporters began fighting each other in the crowd.
It is unclear what sparked the mass brawl but they were seen attacking one another with some even ripping the seats from the stands and launching them.
In attempts to solve the situation, police charged at the away fans before shockingly wielding batons and hitting people.
This left several of the travelling Argentinian contingent bloodied and screaming, with Lionel Messi revealing after the game that the players' friends and family were in this section of the ground.
One fan was even forced to leave the stadium due to bleeding to his head, while others spilled onto the pitch to escape the trouble.
Amid the distressing scenes, goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez then leapt up towards the stands to slap a baton out of an officer's hands before he was restrained by his teammates.
In protest at the violence and in an attempt to reduce the tension, Messi led his team-mates back into the changing room.
This forced kick off to be delayed by 27 minutes, before play eventually got underway.
The drama didn't stop there with the sides combining for 22 fouls in a scrappy first half.
After Otamendi had put the World Cup winners ahead, Newcastle midfielder Joelinton - who only made his debut for Brazil in June - was sent off for shoving Rodrigo De Paul in the chest.
The two were tussling in the second half when Joelinton pushed his opponent - with De Paul going down in dramatic fashion as he grabbed his face.
While he didn't appear to make contact with De Paul's face, Joelinton - who had only been introduced as a substitute nine minutes previous - was nonetheless giving his marching orders in the 81st minute at the Maracana.
Once the chaotic game finally concluded, the tension didn't stop there.
Real Madrid and Brazil star Rodrygo then confronted Messi and De Paul in the centre of the pitch, before he told the pair they were 'cowards' for going to the dressing room before kick off, forcing the delay to the match.
When squaring up to Rodrygo, Messi supposedly replied: 'We are the world champions, why are we cowards? Look at your mouth.'
After the original trio came together, several other players from both teams joined in to make sure the conversation didn't escalate further with Messi seen wrapping a hand around the back his opponent's neck before he moved away.
The police then intervened and charged the supporters before hitting them with batons
Argentina then went over to their fans who had been attacked by police ahead of kick off to celebrate their victory.
As they headed off the pitch, Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez continued to escalate the situation as he showed off and tapped the Argentina badge to Brazil supporters as he headed down the tunnel.
Speaking after full-time, Messi lashed out at the police for their actions.
'We saw how [police] were hitting the people, it already happened in the Libertadores final,' he said, referring to the scenes at the Maracana before Fluminense's win over Boca Juniors this year.
'They were more focused on that than on the game. We went to the locker room because it was the best way to calm everything down, a tragedy could have happened.
'We are a family. We decided to play to make situation more calm.'
Messi also took to Instagram after the game as he wrote: 'This team continues to make history.
'Great victory in the Maracana although it will be marked by the repression of the Argentinians once again in Brazil. This can't be tolerated it's insane and it needs to end now!!'
While the on-pitch drama ended there, just to add further storylines to a breathless evening, Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni hinted he could soon depart his role.
'I need to think a lot about what I will do,' Scaloni said after the 1-0 win. 'I need this time to think.'
Scaloni said he'd give it some thought before talking to Argentina's football federation president Claudio Tapia and the players 'because this national team needs a coach that has every possible energy, and that feels well.'
'It is not a goodbye, it is not something else. But I need to think because the bar is set really high and it is tough to go ahead. It is tough to continue winning.'
Argentina lead the 10-team South American World Cup qualifying competition with 15 points from six matches, followed by Uruguay on 13 and Colombia on 12.
Meanwhile, Brazil could end the year in sixth position, with seven points from six matches.
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