Galtier confirms Messi’s ‘last match’, retropedal club

2023-06-01 15:11:00

The Parisian tactician said he saw it as a “privilege” to have been able to “lead” Lionel Messi. A few hours later, PSG backtracked.

By BL with AFP

Lionel Messi will have remained two seasons in the Parisian club.
© FRANCK FIFE / AFP

Published on 06/01/2023 at 3:11 p.m.

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« Shis last match at the Parc des Princes. “With a short sentence, the Paris Saint-Germain coach confirmed the departure of Lionel Messi, after the PSG match against Clermont, scheduled for Saturday, June 3. “I dare to hope that he will be welcomed in the best possible way,” said the technician on Thursday 1^is June about the For moneywho has already suffered the whistles of some of the supporters several times.

PSG, however, made it clear to AFP that Galtier “had expressed himself badly and that the match against Clermont would be Messi’s last at the Parc with PSG this season”. At the end of the contract on June 30 with PSG, the Argentine world champion should not however extend his lease with the capital club after two seasons. An internal source told AFP in early May that “if the club had wanted to renew his contract, it would have been done earlier”.

Messi will leave PSG after two seasons. For his future destination, he is torn between FC Barcelona, ​​Saudi Arabia and Inter Miami. About his record in two seasons at PSG, “many things have been said about Lionel Messi, you have analyzed a lot,” Galtier told journalists at a press conference. He found the criticisms of the Parisian No. 30 “not at all, but not at all justified”.

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Galtier’s “privilege”

According to Galtier’s calculations, Messi, at “35 with a season with a World Cup in the middle”, has stats of “21 goals and 22 assists [20 selon le site transfermarkt, NDLR]. That means he was decisive 43 times [41]. He has always been at the service of the game and animation team. »

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Arrived in the summer of 2022, Galtier considers it a “privilege” to have been able to “lead the best player in the history of football”. “I won’t tell you about his first season, he had to adapt, it was the first time he left Barcelona. But this year he has been an important element, always available, always present in training sessions,” concluded the coach.