India, Dec. 16 -- Lionel Messi's much-hyped 'GOAT Tour of India' concluded on a mixed note, with a chaotic opening leg in Kolkata casting a shadow over an otherwise smooth series of appearances in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi.

The tour began on December 13 at Kolkata's Yuva Bharati Krirangan (Salt Lake Stadium), where thousands of fans were left enraged after failing to get a proper glimpse of the football superstar.

The situation spiralled out of control as chairs and bottles were thrown and parts of the stadium were vandalised in protest.

While organisers bore the brunt of criticism, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar questioned whether Messi himself should escape scrutiny.

Writing in Sportstar, Gavaskar said the incident was blamed...