THE dust of anger has begun to settle following the recent visit by La Liga giants FC Barcelona and their star striker Lionel Messi to Malaysia.  

However, as the sense of indignation lingers over the reported fiasco surrounding the "friendly" match between the Malaysian national team and Barcelona — which the latter won 3-1, it would be apropos to revive the memory of something similar that had taken place in the past.

Many people may have forgotten, but way back in January 1982, Malaysians had waited with bated breath for a visit by another Argentinian football superstar — Diego Maradona.

Amidst huge fanfare of expectation, Maradona flew in with his Boca Juniors team for a friendly match against a Selangor side, led by Malaysian legend Mokhtar Dahari.

I still remember the massive drums of media publicity prior to Maradona's arrival, both in Malaysia and Singapore.

(Singapore's Fandi Ahmad and Thailand's Piyapong Pue-on were specially invited to be part of the Selangor team for the match at the Merdeka Stadium, which Boca won 2-1. Fandi scored Selangor's only goal.)

As fate would have it, soon after the game was over and the Boca Juniors team packed up and left, all the anticipation fizzled into expressions of dismay and disappointment, by fans and commentators alike.

People reportedly complained at how aloof and unfriendly Maradona had seemed.

One fan who had waited for a long time for an autograph described how, when he got close to the superstar, found himself being shoved aside by bodyguards and handed a photocopy of Maradona's signature instead.

Journalists too lamented at how inaccessible the visiting team was.

Even when Maradona scored one of Boca's two goals, traipsing around Malaysian goalkeeper R Arumugam before coolly tapping in the ball, his celebration was muted at best.

One newspaper splashed the headline "Mana Dona?" on its back page.

Some three decades later, another generation of Malaysians had a similar sort of experience, as reports swirled about how they were reeling from disappointment at Messi and his Barcelona team.

It was not just the logistical shortcomings that stirred the public's vexation.

No doubt there were questions about the last minute change of the stadium venue.

There were complaints by those who purchased expensive tickets but were not allowed to be seated in the appropriate sections, and allegations of rough and ill-mannered treatment meted by security "consultants" at the site.

But the most disheartening of all was very likely the reaction — or lack thereof — by the Barcelona team, and in particular Messi himself, to the massive welcome that had been accorded to him, not just by the organisers, but by the common Malaysian fans at large.

Hundreds of fans — including children, who devotedly waited for the team at the publicised places before and after the match, were left hanging high and dry.

Many could not get the simple autograph or even a distant photo, let alone the single live glimpse that they so craved of their idols, as the players seemed to elude the public.

There were reports that indicated the players were being whisked about to evade the waiting local fans.

It also did not help that contrary to expectations, Messi did not play at all during the match; but was seen sitting on the bench or ambling about in his sandals.

There seemed very little, if any at all, appreciation or even acknowledgement of the thousands of fans who had taken time and spent money to see their idols.

The attitude seemed blasé at best. To many, it was plain rude.

From disappointment, the feeling snowballed to frustration, and then to utter humiliation. The situation was in sharp contrast to the hype and publicity that had been trumped up about the rare visit to this corner of the world, by the great Barcelona and the demigod Messi.

As disheartening as it may be, the disillusionment that the incident generated among Malaysians should perhaps be taken to heart.

After all, this whole scenario was preceded by an expensive advertising and publicity project, largely meant to serve corporate marketing interests and the image positioning of Barcelona, in this part of Asia.  

There may have been, if they so insist, some sincere, well-intentioned motive in their coming here, in terms of reaching out across cultures, in the spirit of sportsmanship and so on.

But if that was indeed the primary intention, the trip turned out to be a miserable failure. In many ways, what transpired served to insult our personal and national dignity.

Many Malaysians, including obsessive followers, felt they had been condescended upon — treated with disdain by a personality and club they had actually looked up to, and in some cases, fanatically so.

There is of course no doubt that the likes, Maradona and Messi, are stupendously-gifted sporting talents.

The memories they both left behind, however, may well serve as humiliating reminders that we are but consumers being taken for a ride by powerful concerns, for their own self-seeking benefits.

The story first appeared in fz.com's Opinion section on Aug 23, 2013.