Argentina’s soccer coach, Javier Mascherano, revealed that the team’s Olympic training base was robbed ahead of their tumultuous 2-1 loss to Morocco. The delegation filed a police report in Lyon, with the prosecutor’s office in Saint-Étienne confirming the incident.
Theft details and impact
“They went into training and they robbed us, in the Olympic Games,” Mascherano said after his team’s shocking 2-1 loss. “We didn’t want to say anything after training, I don’t think it helps anything. But obviously it’s a bit disagreeable that these kinds of things happen.”
Mascherano said midfielder Thiago Almada’s watch was among the items taken.
It has been a troubled start to the Olympics for Argentina, which took gold in 2004 and 2008.
Game disruption and controversy
The match in Saint-Étienne was suspended for nearly two hours after Moroccan fans invaded the field, protesting a goal by Cristian Medina in added time. The goal was later disallowed by VAR. Morocco managed to maintain their lead, securing the win after fans were cleared from Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.
Argentina’s soccer federation lodged a formal protest with FIFA, vowing to take necessary measures to ensure player safety.
Similar incident
Australian BMX Olympic and world champion Logan Martin faced an unexpected setback just days before his Olympic competition. The 30-year-old, who is defending his gold medal in BMX freestyle from Tokyo, had his van broken into while traveling to the Games in Belgium. Martin’s van, parked overnight, was targeted, resulting in the theft of his equipment.