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Messi is a failed deal for PSG. |
Lionel Messi just turned 38. PSG's X account sent a birthday greeting with the joke: "See you Sunday" (PSG faces Inter Milan in the round of 16 of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025™ on the evening of June 29).
However, most PSG fans were not interested in that wish because in their memories, Messi's time at Parc des Princes was not beautiful. And in fact, Messi himself was not very happy. He has made that clear for the past 2 years.
This weekend, PSG will face Messi in a match that is being described as a "cold reunion" between two people who used to walk together but never really understood or belonged to each other. Rather, it is more like a social meeting between two people who once mistakenly thought they belonged to each other, only to realize that parting ways was for the best.
Hasty, wrong decision
Messi never wanted to leave Barcelona. Camp Nou was more than his second home. Leo spent most of his playing career, even his youth, in the Catalan city, starting a family and dreaming of ending his career at the club he considered the only one.
But both Messi and Barca have fallen victim to Josep Maria Bartomeu’s reign. The former president pushed the club to the brink of bankruptcy with reckless spending, only for his successor Joan Laporta to struggle to save it with financial leverage. Laporta was eventually forced to admit that Barca could not afford Messi’s huge contract, despite public statements to the contrary.
Messi collapsed. The tears at the farewell press conference were not an act. Even his close friend Luis Suarez exclaimed in surprise: " I have never seen Leo cry like that in Barcelona. He was really in pain."
After that shock, Messi should have given himself time to calmly choose a new path. He himself admitted that he had many attractive offers. But less than two days after the tears in Barcelona, Messi immediately debuted for PSG.
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Messi has never been happy at PSG. |
"We reached an agreement with PSG quite quickly," Messi told France Football in October 2021. "I was convinced by the project, the quality of the squad, the friends in the dressing room... I thought everything would be very easy because I had many Spanish-speaking teammates. And indeed I integrated quite quickly."
However, even with Neymar by his side, the experience in Paris was almost a nightmare for Messi. "I had two unhappy years. The only time I was really happy was when we won the 2022 World Cup. Besides that, everything in Paris was very difficult," he told Mundo Deportivo .
Messi arrived in Paris without a proper pre-season because he was busy with the 2021 Copa America. He contracted Covid-19 in the middle of the season. But the biggest problem is not professional but family life.
Messi's family spent six weeks living in a hotel because they couldn't find a place to live, and the traffic in Paris was so bad that he was frustrated. "The kids couldn't take it anymore," Messi told Le Figaro .
Of course, PSG fans still expected more. In his first season, Messi scored only 11 goals in all competitions, his worst performance in 16 years. For Parisians, their idol never really belonged here.
A marriage for money
Everyone knows Messi is deeply attached to Barcelona, but PSG fans still hope he will create a bond with his new team. However, Messi admitted that he does not understand why his relationship with PSG fans is broken. However, in reality, Leo has shown almost no goodwill.
During his two years in Paris, Messi only stepped onto the pitch to thank the fans once, and only because Neymar told him to. A player who lacks passion becomes the target of boos, especially when Leo shines brightly with Argentina at the 2022 World Cup.
This made PSG fans angry and ask: "Where is the excellent Messi when we were kicked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid?".
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Breaking up turned out to be the right thing for Leo and PSG. |
Many fans realized from the beginning that Messi came to PSG simply because of the huge salary that only the Qatari owner could afford. He became a symbol of PSG's flashy policy. The Messi deal is somewhat similar to Neymar, who has been fed up with Parisians for many years.
One PSG fan told Goal in 2023: "Messi is nothing more than a marketing deal. He represents everything we have hated about the QSI project in recent years."
Both PSG and Messi share a common desire for the Champions League. Messi has won it four times, but his last title was in 2015. PSG still craves that silver cup.
But in the end, Messi did not help them get closer. On the contrary, he exposed his inherent weakness. Another superstar who did not defend, made the squad unbalanced. Vitinha and other midfielders were forced to "work" instead, leading to PSG falling in the round of 16 for two consecutive seasons.
In fact, PSG still wants to keep Messi, at least for commercial reasons. Leo really brought PSG a series of huge sponsorship contracts with record revenues. But Messi refused to renew, paving the way for Inter Miami, reuniting with old friends from Barca and enjoying a more comfortable life.
When Messi left, PSG was forced to change. Kylian Mbappe also left Paris after that. The disappearance of two stars with huge incomes from the salary fund helped PSG have resources to invest in young talents, laying the foundation for a historic Champions League title in the 2024/25 season.
President Nasser Al-Khelaifi admitted that PSG learned a valuable lesson from the Messi deal. And so did Messi. Leo's heart has never belonged to Paris, as evidenced by his trip to Saudi Arabia to do tourism photos, indirectly ending the relationship with Qatar.
But, after all, neither side regretted it. Messi got Miami, got his smile back. PSG got the Champions League title they craved. A "temporary love affair" is remembered as a wrong combination, and parting ways turned out to be the right thing to do.
Source: https://znews.vn/messi-va-psg-cuoc-hon-nhan-vi-tien-post1564477.html
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