Salt Bae has attracted the ire of football fans after making his way onto the pitch appearing to pester Lionel Messi for a photo as the Argentine talisman tried to celebrate with his teammates.
The Turkish chef, who went viral for a flamboyant hand gesture as he salts steak, was spotted on the pitch shortly after the final spot kick in Argentina’s thrilling victory over France on Sunday.
In viral footage, Salt Bae is seen tugging at Lionel Messi’s arm repeatedly as the attacker appears to try and pull away from his attention.
One viewer said: “Messi told Salt Bae no twice while he’s trying to hug his family, guy chased and grabbed him again. What a p****. Only time I saw Messi angry in the last hour.”
The celebrity chef, who opened a Knightsbridge restaurant called Nusr-Et, later got his wish posing next to Messi for his Instagram and even doing his signature hand gesture on the trophy itself with Tottenham’s Cristian Romero.
According to FIFA regulations, the trophy can only be “held by a very select group of people, which includes former winners of the World Cup and heads of state”.
But millionaire Nusret Gökçe is seen slapping the World Cup trophy loudly clinking his rings off it as a bemused Angel Di Maria looks at him.
The chef is known for charging high prices for various meats covered in gold-leaf.
One Instagram user said: “Bro why are you begging it? I’ve seen you literally in every pic with the World Cup more than any of the actual Argentinian players. Let them enjoy in peace.”
Another added: “Salt Bae pestering Messi has to be the perfect symbol for all the awful off-field s*** hovering around and poisoning anything good about this World Cup. Dismal little character.”
But one came to his defence, saying: “Gotta respect Salt Bae. Never has a man rinsed more out of putting some salt on a steak.”
His steakhouse was reviewed last year by Evening Standard restaurant reviewer Jimi Famurewa who said it was “a bad restaurant”, going on to describe it as “a vibeless business lounge of a room where mostly amateurish Frankie & Benny’s-level food is served at insultingly high prices.”
Gökçe’s steak-slicing and salt-sprinkling antics propelled him to fame in 2017 and made him an Instagram sensation - he has 49 million followers on the social media platform.
The Turkish social media sensation has also come under fire for allegedly paying his chefs just £12 an hour—the same price Nusr-Et sells corn on the cob for.
