After a tense couple of days between CONMEBOL and the Brazil Football Confederation (CBF), the inevitable has happened in the much-anticipated 2022 World Cup qualifying fixture between Brazil and Argentina.

Over the opening stages of the match, Brazil health authorities and police entered the field in an attempt to detain four La Albiceleste players for allegedly violating COVID-19 protocols.

The Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA) has accused Argentine and Premier League talents Giovani Lo Celso (Tottenham), Cristian Romero (Tottenham), Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa) and Emiliano Buendia (Aston Villa) of breaking COVID-19 rules by providing false information on their immigration forms upon entering the country.

Under Brazil's COVID-19 regulations, visitors who had been in the United Kingdom over the previous 14 days must quarantine for 14 days before arriving in the country. These four Argentine players had all been in the United Kingdom over the past weeks with their respective clubs, and all but Buendia were in the starting lineup to feature in the clash against Brazil.

Tension was already brewing ahead of today's fixture as CONMEBOL reportedly issued a letter to the CBF stating that if any Argentina players from the Premier League were prohibited from playing today, La Albiceleste would be awarded a forfeit win and the three points.

Rather than resolving the matter before the fixture, Anvisa attempted to intervene during the matchup between the two South American powerhouses, which, as expected, created much chaos between players and coaches from both teams.

The match was then officially suspended after one notable wait.

“By decision of the match referee, the match organized by FIFA between Brazil and Argentina for the World Cup Qualifiers is suspended,” CONMEBOL announced.

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Argentina superstar and new Paris Saint-Germain forward Lionel Messi ripped the decision, as a hot mic caught him questioning on why this dilemma was not fully addressed before the match.

“We've been here for three days, we were waiting to play the match,” Messi said. “Why didn't you come earlier?”

It will be noteworthy to see how FIFA elects to address this controversy and whether any fines could come to either of the two federations over just how this debacle was handled. 

For now, Argentina will finish its September international schedule with a 2022 World Cup qualifier against Bolivia on Thursday. On the other hand, the Selecao will face Peru on Thursday as it looks to inch closer to clinching the top spot in the 2022 CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying table.