Lionel Messi meant no disrespect to China by sitting out of Argentina’s February 4 friendly in Hong Kong, the Inter Miami star said on China’s largest social media network.

Chinese state media, Hong Kong politicians and fans reacted angrily when the 36-year-old Argentine forward came off the bench three days later in a friendly match in Tokyo.

Since then Hangzhou and Beijing have said they will not host Argentina games scheduled for March as the fallout rumbles on and now Messi has spoken in an attempt to diffuse the situation.

‘I’ve read and heard many things that have been said after the game in Hong Kong. I wanted to record this video and give you the true version so nobody has to continue reading false stories,’ Messi said in a video posted on Weibo.

‘I’ve heard people say that I didn’t want to play for political reasons and many other reasons that are totally untrue.

Lionel Messi nurses an injury on the bench during Inter Miami’s February 4 exhibition in China

‘Had that been the case I wouldn’t have even travelled to Japan or visited China, as I have many times. Since the start of my career I’ve had a very close and special relationship with China.’

Messi repeated the reason for his absence from the highly-anticipated game against a local League XI in Hong Kong on February 4.

‘As I said in the press conference, I had an inflamed adductor and I couldn’t play in the first game in Saudi Arabia, which is when I felt it.

‘In the second game I tried to play for a bit, but it got worse. Then on the day before the game (in Hong Kong) I tried to train and made an effort for all those who had come to watch training.

‘It felt a bit better a few days later and that’s why I played for a bit in Japan to prepare fitness wise for everything to come because I needed to play and get back up to speed.’

Video: Lionel Messi DENIES accusations that he skipped Inter Miami’s exhibition in Hong Kong over politics:

Argentina was scheduled to play Nigeria in the Chinese city of Hangzhou next month before facing the Ivory Coast in Beijing, but Messi’s failure to take the field for Inter Miami in Hong Kong on Sunday caused widespread anger among fans.

The organiser of the Hong Kong match said they would give fans a 50-percent refund for tickets after the Argentine did not take the field during their 4-1 win against Hong Kong All-Stars due to injury, but played in Japan days later.

The backlash grew on Friday, with Hangzhou sports authorities saying that Argentina’s friendly against Nigeria would no longer take place.

‘As a commercial event, a company and the Argentinian soccer team negotiated that the team would play a friendly match in March this year in the city of Hangzhou,’ the Hangzhou authorities said in a statement.

Fans react after not seeing Inter Miami’s Argentine forward Lionel Messi play on February 4

Messi and his teammates touched down in Hong Kong on February 2 after being thumped, 6-0, by Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr in Riyadh. The Portuguese superstar did not make an appearance, while Messi came on in the 83rd minute.

Reports claimed that the Argentina World Cup winner had been carrying a hamstring injury upon the team’s arrival. But according to Hong Kong’s sports minister, Messi had been contracted to play for at least 45 minutes.

Two days later, Inter Miami defeated Hong Kong All-Stars 4-1 at the Hong Kong stadium, but the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, despite being named on the bench, was not brought on by manager Gerardo Martino, angering fans inside the ground.

Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham greeted the crowd after the game to thank them for an ‘incredible welcome’, but he was met by boos from the 40,000 fans inside the stadium, with some having paid around $460 to catch a glimpse of Messi or the injured Luis Suarez.

Reports initially claimed that fans would not be reimbursed should Messi not feature during the game, with the 36-year-old having been utilized heavily in the pre-match advertising. One fan had even flown from Melbourne to watch the superstar play.

Some even took their anger out on advertising hoardings around the stadium, with a video on X (formerly Twitter) showing one fan kicking a cardboard stand of Messi and several of his team-mates, taking the Argentine’s head off.