Giorgio Chiellini shouts ‘clown’ at Riqui Puig in interview after copying Lionel Messi’s celebration

An angry Giorgio Chiellini has been caught on camera calling former Barcelona midfielder Riqui Puig a ‘clown’ after the Los Angeles derby.

LA Galaxy beat Los Angeles FC 2-0 in the US Open Cup, and after Puig scored the second goal, he took off his number six shirt and held it up in front of the crowd.

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The celebration was a mirror image of his former Barca teammate Lionel Messi, who symbolically held his shirt up in front of the Bernabeu crowd during a game against Real Madrid in 2017.

But Juventus and Italy legend Chiellini was not happy at all, shouting “payaso!” or “clown” to the Spaniard who was in the middle of a post-match interview.

Puig undoubtedly had reason to be overjoyed, with his goal an absolutely stunning dribble to make amends for a missed penalty earlier.

During his incredible run from midfield, he left defenders on the ground to cap the victory and secure a place in the quarter-finals of the cup.

Chiellini, who didn’t play, clearly thought it was an over-celebration, considering that in the league, his LAFC lead the Eastern Conference with 25 points in 12 games, while the LA Galaxy de Puig are bottom with nine points from 13 games. .

Chiellini moved to the United States in 2022 after a trophy-filled career in Italy, and quickly added to his honors as Gareth Bale helped LAFC win their first MLS Cup later that year.

It was an expected move for the 38-year-old defender but the same can’t be said for Puig who surprisingly left Barca aged 22.

With the club in the midst of financial difficulties, Puig left when his contract in Spain expired, but Barca have the option of re-signing him and will receive 50% of any future sales.

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The move came as a huge surprise though, with Puig being one of the most exciting prospects in Barcelona’s academy who also produced former team-mate Messi.