Lionel Messi paid our salary - Argentine security staff

Former Argentina coach Gerardo Martino, according to reports had received his salary for six months before the Copa America this summer, while Olympic team coach Julio Olarticoechea also revealed  in August that neither he nor his staff had received a salary.

According Juan Pablo Varsky,  an Argentine journalis, the financial situation has deteriorated to the point where the national team's security staff asked the country's biggest star for assistance before last week's World Cup qualifier in Brazil.

"Lionel Messi was in his room waiting for the
game against Brazil in Belo Horizonte, when a
knock at the door came," Varsky said on
Spanish radio.

"Two or three people appeared, all from the
security team who look after the Argentine
team and they said, 'Leo, we have to talk with
you. For five or six months they have not paid
us. The situation is complicated, you are the
captain of the team, you know us, we are
asking for your help.'

Varsky said that Messi called his father to send
the staff money as a way to end the dispute,
but that the Barcelona player did not want his
action to become public.

"There are a lot of actions he doesn't want
people to know about but I thought it pertinent
to tell this because there is no reason not to,
save for his anger," Varsky said.
In June, Messi called the AFA a

"disaster" following a flight delay, and three
days later announced his retirement from the
national team, though he has since returned.

The following month, Martino and his staff
resigned, citing the "uncertainty over the
designation of new authorities in the Argentine
Football Association."