Three weeks after the historic conquest of the World Cup in Qatar, the captain of the Argentine National Team was summoned to play the match that will begin at 5:00 p.m. at the Parque de los Príncipes stadium in Paris.
Messi received a warm welcome from the PSG squad, staff and leadership when he returned to training last week.
While the French media speculate on how the reception of the Parisian fans will be, from the club in the French capital they decided not to put together a special tribute since, according to the newspaper Le Parisien, the reception they gave him last week at the Camp des Loges training center “is enough”.
This position, however, contradicts what Galtier expressed last week when he indicated that he expected a “celebration” for the representative of the World Champion squad in Qatar 2022.
However, Messi will play his first game of 2023 and will begin the nineteenth year of his immense professional career, which has already exceeded a thousand games (1,003) and is just seven goals away from reaching 800 goals.
The best player in the 2022 Qatar World Cup, with seven goals and three assists, returned to Paris last Tuesday and rejoined the squad led by coach Christophe Galtier the next day.
During the absence of number 30, the Parisian team played three games, two for Ligue 1 and another for the French Cup.
On December 28, while Messi was on leave in his native Rosario, the last French champion just barely beat Strasbourg 2-1 and three days later suffered the first defeat of the season after losing 3-1 on his visit to escort Lens.
Last Friday, with Messi already reinstated in the squad, PSG advanced to the next round of the French Cup after beating third-division Chateauroux 3-1.
Messi last played with his team on November 13 at the Parc des Princes, against Auxerre (5-0), for the 15th. date.
Before joining the Argentine national team, the winner of seven Ballon d’Ors had scored seven goals in Liga 1 and provided ten assists.
At the age of 35, “Leo” is the team’s top assister and the third goalscorer behind Neymar (11) and the Frenchman Kylian Mbappé (13) who still has not returned after the break granted by the coaching staff after showing up for some days after losing the World Cup final.
The Brazilian, meanwhile, will also reappear after being sent off against Strasbourg.
Messi is going through his second season at Paris Saint Germain after his traumatic departure from Barcelona and there is speculation about a possible contract extension, which ends in June this year.
Galtier was consulted today about the situation and assured that there are “conversations” between the player’s environment and the leadership.
“There are conversations with the sports management to renew and the new contract. I see ‘Leo’ very happy in Paris, then we will see his position on the club’s project”said Galtier, who replaced Argentine Mauricio Pochettino in the middle of last year.
Meanwhile, the crack is already focused on the objectives that it will have in the first semester of 2023.
PSG will have six Ligue 1 games and in between the tour of Qatar and Saudi Arabia before receiving Bayern Munich for the first leg of the Champions League round of 16.
The match will be played on February 14 at the Parc des Princes and the rematch will be on March 8 in Germany.
The “Flea” is the second historical scorer in the most important competition in Europe with 129 goals, twelve behind the mark of the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo, who will continue his career in soccer in Saudi Arabia.
The man from Rosario suffered a hard blow in the last edition after being eliminated by Real Madrid in an incredible series that turned around in the last fifteen minutes of the rematch.
The last time Messi won the “Orejona”, the fourth of his career, was more than seven years ago with Barcelona in the 2014/15 season.
Source: Ambito
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