The talk of the town in the football arena and also the most anticipated event has taken place after a long wait as Messi signed a two-year contract with Paris St-Germain. The 34-year-old football magician made his PSG debut on Sunday.
Messi left Barca – the club he used to play for – as they couldn’t make a new deal with him under La-Liga’s financial fair play rules.
Messi entered in the 66th minute as a substitute for his old friend Neymar in a Ligue 1 road match where his fans were already chanting his name. Once again he started on the bench, wearing the number 30 jersey.
However, he didn’t play a single match since his arrival in Paris. He last appeared in the Copa America final on July 11, when he led his country to a victory against the host Brazil.
On Messi’s special night, PSG certainly won the match but he will have to wait for his first goal with his new club. His next match for PSG will be on September 11, as they head into the International break.
“It’s difficult at the moment because our players are all at different levels of fitness,” Pochettino told reports after the match. “He [Messi] was very good from the moment he entered the pitch.
“Every time he touched the ball, he spread calm throughout the team. It’s important even for Lionel Messi to win on his debut.
“He can radiate an optimism and energy that everyone can feel and that can have a positive influence on the other players.”
However, Kylian Mbappe stole the show by scoring two goals in a 2-0 win for PSG over Reims. He has been the subject of a new hot topic as Real Madrid had submitted an offer to be worth 180 million Euros, an astronomical amount for a player whose contract will expire at the end of this season.
After the match, the PSG head coach said: “Kylian is our player and you know that in football and in business there is always gossip and rumors.
He also added, “He (Mbappe) is one of the best, one of the most important players in the world today, and for him to be with us is a gift.”
The last match was PSG’s fourth consecutive win in this season. Surely, PSG didn’t deliver their best in the match, but they’ll take the win.