'Don't know why everyone is getting so worked up' - Rostyn Griffiths

The defender was involved in an altercation with one of KBFC’s defenders.

Mumbai City FC’s 2-1 win over Kerala Blasters FC in the Indian Super League 2023-24 on Sunday was full of fireworks. Apart from the high-octane footballing action, fans also witnessed players clashing with each other which led to two red cards being shown to Milos Drincic of KBFC and Yoëll van Nieff of MCFC, respectively.

There was another altercation at the final whistle between Rostyn Griffiths of Mumbai City and Prabir Das of Kerala Blasters. According to the visuals, the former seemingly held the latter in a chokehold and there was an exchange of words between the individuals. While there was no disciplinary action taken by the referee on the ground, the clash left Prabir Das visibly shaken and in tears.

Rostyn Griffiths' take on the events

While Prabir Das has made serious allegations suggesting abuses being hurled towards his mother, Rostyn Griffiths has downplayed the series of events. Taking to the social media, the defender posted, quoting the pictures of him holding Das in a chokehold. He quoted a post by a fan saying, “Don’t know why everyone is getting so worked up! This guy was going around trying to fight everyone and I thought he might just need a cuddle.”

It was visible to everyone in the Mumbai Football Arena and to those watching through digital means that Prabir Das was quite animated throughout the game. Whether it was while celebrating the goal by Danish Farooq or protesting the referee’s numerous calls, the defender did not hold back on expressing his emotions and clashed with several MCFC players as well. 

It is unclear what was said between Prabir Das and Rostyn Griffiths towards the end of the game, but both players reacted differently to the events. Having said that, it is always an ugly sight to see footballers becoming physically aggressive with each other.