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Egypt’s best known archaeologist apologized after he angrily called Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi “an idiot” because the striker seemed to show little interest during a tour of the Giza Pyramids.

In a TV interview aired on Sunday, Hawass was asked how Messi’s reaction compared to that of Hollywood movie star Will Smith, who also toured the Pyramids with Hawass earlier this month.

“Messi is an idiot, and I am sorry to say that,” he snapped. “I was explaining the antiquities to him and there’s no reaction in his face. I was explaining things that would make a rock react, but he was just like an idiot.”

In a statement late Tuesday, Hawass said he was expressing anger over an inefficient interpreter when he was interviewed on the telephone by a talk show host. He made no mention of an interpreter in his original comments on Messi.

Messi is an idiot, and I am sorry to say that

“I apologise to Messi and his fans for the misunderstanding,” he said, professing to be an avid fan of the Argentine who watches all his games on television.

“The nature of brief telephone interviews does not allow enough time to accurately explain what is meant. That contributed to the misunderstanding,” he said.