7 of football’s pettiest social media spats: Szoboszlai, Messi & Ronaldo…

Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai isn't the first footballer to have got himself embroiled in some petty social media beef, and he won't be the last.

Things on X and Instagram are often pretty sterile and lacking personality in this age of professionally-managed accounts, but sometimes footballers just can't help themselves.

Here are seven of the most petty social media posts from footballers, with one manager who ought to know better for good measure.

Dominik Szoboszlai

Not for the first time, Szoboszlai clashed with Real Madrid wonderkid Arda Guler on the international stage.

In their latest meeting, a 3-0 UEFA Nations League victory for Turkey over Hungary, Guler put his fingers to his lips and shushed the midfielder.

The photo of the incident was posted on Instagram, to which Szoboszlai commented “'1088”.

The meaning behind that cryptic number? The total number of minutes that Guler has played for Madrid this season.

Szoboszlai went out and actively researched the 20-year-old's stats – that's the kind of world-class, dedicated hating that even Neal Maupay can aspire to.

Lamine Yamal

Szoboszlai wasn't the only star to give a little back this international break.

“I noticed some things about Lamine Yamal that started to annoy me,” former Real Madrid midfielder Rafael van der Vaart said in between the two legs of the Netherlands' Nations League quarter-final against Spain.

“His shorts were too low, he didn't try too hard, he had some superficial gestures… I didn't like this.”

That kind of comment about a 17-year-old footballer is a bit sus, to say the least. Yamal had the perfect response, pulling his shorts down to knee-level after scoring a brilliant goal. He missed a penalty in the shootout but ended up on the winning team regardless.

“Shorts down, goal scored, missed penalty and in the semifinals… vamos, Spain,” the teenager posted on Instagram, accompanied by a meme of Van der Vaart looking upset. Well played, lad.

Neal Maupay

The Frenchman (or, more accurately, the social media firm that work for him) has done remarkably well to build Brand Maupay as the biggest sh*thouse in world football right now.

As well as his on-pitch exploits, Maupay appears perfectly happy to ruffle a few feathers with his social media posts.

The highlight so far was probably posting the iconic Shawshank Redemption freedom scene after officially leaving Everton. The best part? He only left on loan and remains on the Merseyside club's books for now.

If one goal in 32 appearances for Everton wasn't enough to burn his bridges with the Goodison faithful, that'll do it.

Lionel Messi

Unlike his eternal rival, we don't tend to get a lot of Messi drama (no pun intended) in the Insta comments. The Argentinian tends to keep things pretty civil and diplomatic.

But even an eight-time World Cup winner is not above some petty social media nonsense. Jamie Carragher has revealed that Messi slid into his DMs to call him a 'donkey' a few years back, while he unfollowed Argentina team-mate Alejandro Garnacho after the Manchester United starlet posted his adoration of Cristiano Ronaldo.

“You know what I like about Garnacho? He doesn't give a f*ck,” stated Rio Ferdinand on his Vibe with Five YouTube channel.

“Garnacho told me that Messi unfollowed him just because he makes no secret of preferring Ronaldo. He comes out, don't care, 'I'm a Ronaldo man'. Who's the GOAT? Ronaldo. (Even) when he's in the Argentina squad.”

Cristiano Ronaldo

Where to begin with Ronaldo?

The 40-year-old is infamously thin-skinned if he feels he isn't getting enough respect. He's a low-key master of the passive-aggressive social media drive-by, with countless examples over the years.

Carragher (again – why always him?), Wayne Rooney, and Antonio Cassano are among those who have drawn ire for not worshipping sufficiently at the altar of the GOAT – but our favourite example is him blocking Transfermarkt for not evaluating his transfer value high enough.

“He sent a message first to our social media guys,” Tranfermarkt's Christian Schwarz told The Athletic.

“They answered him, explained why, and told him 'The people in your own age group, you are by far the number one.' I think it was £30-50 million difference (between Ronaldo and the next player on the list), and then he sent some smilies, and then he blocked us.”

READ: 6 football superstars Cristiano Ronaldo has insulted over the years: Messi, Pele…

Antonio Conte

You might think a manager in their fifties would be above Instagram beef. Think again.

Back in 2022, following handshake-gate between Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte after Tottenham's hard-fought 2-2 draw with Chelsea, the former Spurs manager posted a screencap of Tuchel running straight past him while celebrating with the following:

“Lucky I didn't see you… Making you trip over would have been well deserved…”

In fairness, Conte was making light of the situation and didn't appear to harbour any genuine ill-will towards Tuchel following their touchline spat.

“Yes, and I think he enjoyed it as well. It was nothing bad,” Conte told Sky Sports after the match.

“It's Premier League football and the two managers got involved today, because both of us were fighting for our teams.

“Nobody got insulted, nobody got hurt; there was no fist fight or anything.”

Jadon Sancho

The Manchester United loanee commented “Freedom” on Marcus Rashford's Instagram post following his debut for Aston Villa.

Recent reports have suggested that Chelsea are considering stumping up £5million to get out of their 'obligation' to sign the winger on a permanent deal.

Get a documentary crew over to Carrington pronto, because the toe-curling awkwardness if Sancho has to return will rival The Office.

READ NEXT: 7 big-name footballers who've had beef with Lionel Messi: Ronaldo, Lewandowski…

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