At the end of the match between Peru and Argentina in the fourth matchday of the 2026 South American qualifiers, a Peruvian fan went onto the pitch of the National Stadium to take a photo with him Lionel Messi. The fan evaded several security officers and was eventually stopped by two people and the goalkeeper as he approached the Argentine star. Pedro Gallesewho looked for his cell phone and then threw it several meters away.
After the incident, the former Alianza Lima goalkeeper received several positive and negative comments. After a few hours, the underage fan spoke up in a detailed video and explained everything that happened that night. It should be noted that the fan’s action is not allowed and the Peruvian team could be subject to sanctions as several people enter the pitch.
“What Gallese does is turn around, grab my phone and in the video you can see that I’m there with my phone. I mean, they already caught me, but why would I grab my phone if I’m covering it up.” ? Why pack it up and throw it away? I do not get it. I’m not 20 years old, I’m not of legal age as people say, I’m 17,” he said in a clip that he posted on his social networks.
The minor assured that he went onto the pitch in the final minutes in order not to interrupt the game and not to be held responsible for influencing the result. He also stated that he could denounce the national goalkeeper.
“I can easily report you, Gallese. I read and there are people who are against Gallese and others who are for it. I never wanted to do them against him, I just wanted to take a photo or even hug Messi, but neither of these two could because Gallese got in the way. It’s not your job, crazy, your job is just to save and they scored two goals,” he added.
What did Pedro Gallese say about the incident with the fan?
Speaking from Jorge Chávez Airport, the Orlando City goalkeeper noted that he threw away the phone because he felt “they didn’t respect our colors.”
“The fans have been carried away by the sight of the world champion, but they don’t know that they can harm us because they can close the stadium. They didn’t go out to cheer yesterday. My reaction was because I felt like they didn’t respect our colors,” he explained.