Zlatan Ibrahimovic has slammed Inter Miami players for not complimenting Lionel Messi's effort in their defeat against Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 of the FIFA Club World Cup.

The European champions thrashed the MLS side 4–0 at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday, June 29, to book their place in the quarterfinals.

João Neves scored a brace, with Tomás Avilés scoring an own goal before Achraf Hakimi added the fourth on the stroke of halftime.

The second half didn’t produce any goals, as Luis Enrique’s side eased past Javier Mascherano’s team to set up a quarterfinal clash against Bayern Munich.

Despite Inter Miami’s abysmal performance in the game, Lionel Messi stood out with an impressive showing against his former side.

Reacting to the game, Ibrahimovic—who played alongside Lionel Messi at Barcelona—defended his former teammate while lashing out at the Inter Miami players for letting the Argentine down.

“Messi’s defeat? No, no, don’t talk about the defeat as if it were his fault! Messi didn’t lose, Inter Miami did! Have you seen the team? Messi plays with statues, not teammates! If he was in a real team—in Paris, Manchester, in any of the big teams—you’d have seen the real lion,” Ibrahimovic told ,Foot Mercato.

“Messi only plays because he loves the game, because he can still do what 99% of players can’t! But he’s surrounded by those who run around like they’re carrying bags of cement!”

WDN