Referee Roddy Zambrano 'Surprised' by Lionel Messi Criticism at Copa America

Roddy Zambrano, the referee who took charge of the Copa America semi-final between Brazil and Argentina, has said he was "surprised" to receive criticism from Lionel Messi after the game. 

Messi has scrutinised the performances of the match officials in the tournament and referenced two penalties he feels the Albiceleste should have received against Brazil in their 2-0 semi-final loss. The Barcelona man was then sent off in the 2-1 win over Chile in the third-place fixture.

In one incident in the semi-final, Sergio Aguero seemed to be fouled off the ball by Dani Alves, while in another Arthur checked Nicolas Otamendi's run in the penalty area. Speaking to Super K-800 (h/t Sean Wilson of Goal), Zambrano explained why he made the calls and his reaction to some criticism from the Argentina star:

"It's not a nudge [from Arthur on Otamendi], the VAR checked and determined that it was 50-50. They did not consider it to be a clear penalty. On the first play it is clear that Aguero steps in. It's almost a reckless foul on the defender. I never lost contact with the VAR, that is totally false.

"[Messi] is dedicated to playing, and I never had problems with him, the truth is that I was surprised by his statements after the match, but everyone has their opinion.

"When the Argentina players said I was nervous, they were referring to the fact that I was annoyed because I am always serious when I referee."

As football writer Roy Nemer relayed, Messi didn't hold back in his assessment of the refereeing at the Copa, which was eventually won by Brazil:

In the game against Chile, Messi was given his marching orders along with Chile defender Gary Medel. The Barcelona star appeared a little hard done by with his dismissal, as Medel was the aggressor in the exchange between the pair.

As OptaJavier noted, red cards have been a rarity for the Barcelona forward:

While there will no doubt be a number of Argentina supporters who will agree with Messi's assessment of the officiating, Brazil's Thiago Silva hit back at the claims of "corruption" from the forward:

Overall, the tournament was one to forget for Messi, as he struggled to make the kind of impact we've become so accustomed to down the years.

He only scored one goal in his six Copa appearances, a penalty in the 1-1 draw against Paraguay in the group stages of the competition. At the end of a long campaign with Barcelona, which ended with La Liga success but UEFA Champions League and Copa del Rey disappointment, there were some uncharacteristic signs of tiredness from the 32-year-old.

Barcelona supporters will be hopeful he can rest up ahead of the new domestic campaign. Per James Whaling of the Daily Mirror, in line with guidelines from South American governing body CONMEBOL, Messi could face a two-year ban from international football after calling the referees' integrity into question.