Why Mexico's Rafael Marquez will NEVER be named man of the match at the World Cup

Rafael Marquez: former Barcelona star, World Cup record-breaking captain, Mexican hero and persona non grata in the USA.

The 39-year-old came off the bench during Mexico’s shock victory over Germany to help see the game out and in the process he became the first player to captain his country at five World Cups.

But at the end of the game, no major broadcasters rushed to interview him or get his thoughts on the match. There was next to no chance he would ever be awarded the man of the match trophy either.

READ MORE: Cristiano Ronaldo is grabbing headlines at 33 while other stars go missing

READ MORE: Gossip – Sarri demands World Cup star as first signing and more

READ MORE: Female reporter sexually assaulted live on air during World Cup broadcast

Why? Because since last August, Marquez has been on the United States Treasury Department’s blacklist of people it says have helped launder money for drug cartels.

Marquez, along with a number of other people, was placed on the list as the result of an investigation into Raúl Flores Hernández, suspected of leading drug trafficking organisations.

The centre-back and a number of business connected to him are suspected of acting as fronts for Hernández, something he strongly denies and Marquez currently has a team of lawyers fighting to clear his name.

But it does mean that Marquez is enjoying a World Cup like no other, because US companies cannot have anything to do with people on the treasury department’s blacklist, or they risk large fines.

So Marquez’s training kit is not adorned with sponsors, he drinks from water bottles without the usual labels, the Budweiser man of the match award is unlikely to find its way into his arms and any interviews he does do have to be in front of a blank background, not one that is adorned with sponsors.

There is more, too: he can’t stay in certain hotels, flights operated by American-owned carriers are a no-go and if he partakes in a pre-game press conference, FIFA has to ensure none of their American employees are present.

READ MORE: Mexico celebrated Germany win so hard they caused a fake earthquake

READ MORE: Dybala – Messi has our support

READ MORE: Beck – Australia must improve offensively to beat Denmark

Foreign companies are not operating under the same strict measures, so wearing Mexico’s Adidas kit is not an issue and neither are his Puma boots.

Marquez has not actually been criminally-charged, which is why his inclusion in the squad was never in doubt, however he will not be paid for the tournament, just in case it gets complicated for banks.

All of this makes Marquez’s inclusion so intriguing, even before he came on in the closing stages of the victory over Germany, when he became just the third person to play in five World Cups alongside Lothar Matthuas and Antonio Carbajal.

Now an undoubted World Cup legend, Marquez’s presence in Russia is a talking point for so many more reasons.