Lacking class? 38-year-old Argentine veteran snubs Rodri's greeting, yelling face-to-face: "You've been crying to the referee for a week"

In the World Cup final that concluded on July 20, Beijing time, the defending champions Argentina, despite being a man down, managed to drag the match into extra time—only to be defeated by a last-minute goal, losing 0-1 to Spain and missing out on their fourth title.

After the match, a conflict erupted between the two sides. Besides Paredes choking Eric García and body-slamming Gavi, 38-year-old Argentine veteran Otamendi also had a heated argument with Spanish captain Rodri.

After the final whistle, Rodri tried to greet the Argentine players, but Otamendi showed no courtesy and directly confronted him.

In front of Rodri and Oyarzabal, he lashed out: "You've been crying all week. You and Laporte, both of you. That's not the right thing to do, my friend; you've been complaining to the referee."

Rodri looked shocked at Otamendi's face-to-face outburst, repeatedly asking: "What? What?" Oyarzabal tried to calm Otamendi down, but was ignored by the Argentine, who then walked away.

Rodri then kept muttering "respect" to Otamendi, who immediately cut him off: "I have respect, but you shouldn't talk like that, you know?"

Rodri pressed: "What did I say?" By then, the camera could only see Otamendi's back as he continued speaking to the Spanish midfielder.

So why was Otamendi so upset with Rodri and Laporte? The anger stemmed from a series of comments made by the Spanish team before the match. Rodri had said before the game, "Don't fall into provocations."

Laporte, meanwhile, publicly stated that Argentine players use many underhanded tactics to provoke opponents into losing their cool, which should not be allowed in football. In the eyes of the Argentine players, Rodri and Laporte's remarks were a public attempt to pressure the referee, which is why Otamendi was so furious after the match.