(Paris) The suspension of Lionel Messi by Paris Saint-Germain marks the failure of the Ballon d’Or in Paris, where for two seasons he sometimes shone, but experienced a growing loss of love and was often the target of the whistles of the Princes Park.
The club’s decision on Tuesday to suspend the Argentinian “several days” for an unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia probably marks the end of his history with PSG. Will we simply see Messi again on the grounds of Ligue 1, as the break seems to be consummated today?
During this disciplinary procedure, the seven-time Ballon d’Or, who missed Monday’s training without the approval of the staff, “cannot train, cannot play and is not paid”, according to a source with knowledge of the procedure.
A spectacular decision as the sanction is firm with regard to its star and extremely rare, knowing that PSG is often criticized for its lack of authority towards its star players, who sometimes seemed above the institution.
This new controversy adds to the growing resentment of the many supporters, some of whom – the ultras – demonstrated on Monday in front of the Camp des Loges following the defeat against Lorient (3-1) and gathered again on Wednesday evening in front of the headquarters. of the club in Boulogne-Billancourt.
Will the disappointment end up being shared by the club’s owners, the Qatari fund Qatar Sports Investments (QSI)?
The latter have reason to wonder in view of the last months of “the Pulga”. Celebrated in Argentina after the coronation of Doha, the player who will be 36 years old in June showed a whole different facet in Paris.
As PSG’s disappointments this season, he seemed less and less involved in the game, walking a lot, losing duels. And his few flashes of genius did not erase everything.
With Lionel Messi, PSG was supposed to finally pass a mental milestone in the Champions League. However, the club remains on two eliminations in a row in the round of 16, ultimately closer to regression than progression.
Like other teammates, he missed his round of 16 C1 against Bayern Munich.
Since the return of the World Cup, Paris has experienced two eliminations in a row, in C1 and in the Coupe de France against Olympique de Marseille, or successions of defeats in L1 against Rennes, Lyon and recently against Lorient.
These poor results coincided with Messi’s decline on the pitch: he shot less on goal, less on target, and touched fewer balls, especially in the box, from Qatar.
Before the competition, Messi had 12 goals and 14 assists in 19 games. Today, he is at 15 goals and 15 assists in the 33rd day.
In Paris, the superstar’s transplant seemed never to have fully taken, despite some nice moments, his goal against Manchester City in the fall of 2021 or a last-second free kick against Lille (4-3) on the 19th. February, a night when he didn’t show much else, but delivered the victory as a champion. A good summary of his intermittent genius in Paris.
Last season was not better and the finding was the same: the Parisian club won the French Championship, but was eliminated in 8th in C1, and in the Coupe de France.
From a more political and marketing point of view, Leo Messi’s adventure at PSG was rather a great success for the club’s image abroad, especially in Asia.
The arrival of the Argentine star has allowed the arrival of new sponsors. His branding has guaranteed lucrative operations for the club and allowed the club to take a turn globally.
Sales of jerseys, advertising contracts, media coverage and the increase in Park prices are all elements that have enabled the club’s income to increase. Enhance the club financially or athletically? The choice of the athlete could ultimately take over.
Lionel Messi has courtiers in Saudi Arabia and the United States, even if FC Barcelona still dreams of bringing back his idol, a financial operation nevertheless delicate.
At the end of the contract at Paris SG, which suspended him after an unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia, the Ballon d’Or has been negotiating for a long time with his forever club, Barça, according to the specialized press.
The Argentinian dreams of returning to Catalonia at the age of 36 – he will have them in June – and the Camp Nou is carried away by this sweet hope: on several occasions, the Barcelona stadium has chanted the name of his idol in recent weeks.
But the operation is complex for a Barça under budgetary pressure. According to the daily Mundo Deportivo, the club is still awaiting the validation by the Spanish league (LaLiga) of its “viability plan”, which includes the extensions of Gavi, Ronald Araujo, Marcos Alonso and Sergi Roberto, as well as than the return of Messi. But in order to be able to register these players without exceeding the salary cap, Barça must still reduce their expenditure by 200 million euros.
One of the Blaugrana’s first decisions to move towards this goal was to announce the closure of its BarçaTV television channel on June 30. According to the club, the chain suffers EUR 13m of losses per year, but according to the employees, many of whom will find themselves unemployed, these losses amount to only EUR 6 million.
Sufficient ? The sulphurous LaLiga boss Javier Tebas expressed his doubts about the Argentinian’s return to Barça on Friday on RMC Sports: “To date, Messi’s return to Barça seems complicated to me. Barça is not like PSG, which has a gas and ticket tap to offer such big salaries. »
Reunite Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the Saudi Championship and make it a showcase for promoting a Saudi bid to host a World Cup in the coming years: the challenge is crazy, but seems commensurate with the challenge financial power of the Gulf State.
Already under contract with the Saudi tourist office to promote it on its social networks – this was the subject of the Messi family’s unexpected trip to Riyadh – the Argentine star is also being courted to join the local Championship and recreate the mythical rivalry with “CR7”, Al-Nassr player since the winter transfer window.
Several media have mentioned in recent days the existence of a fabulous offer from the Al-Hilal club, valued at 400 million euros per year to bring in the sevenfold Ballon d’Or.
In February, an official familiar with the matter told AFP, on condition of anonymity, that Arabia was also seeking to forge partnerships with Messi to support his candidacy for the organization of a World Cup. A joint candidacy with Egypt and Greece for the 2030 World Cup has been discussed for several months, but has not been formalized.
After the golden bridge offered to Ronaldo, there is no doubt that Saudi Arabia can match Messi’s financial demands and break new records. But will the Argentinian isolate himself in this second-tier championship one year from the 2024 Copa America, which could be his last international event?
This hypothesis comes up less frequently in transfer rumors, but it does exist: a new challenge for Messi at Inter Miami, Florida, in a North American league that has always eyed late-career South American stars, such as Kaka, Gonzalo Higuain or currently Douglas Costa.
The option has the advantage of bringing the family closer to Argentina, to Miami, where the Messis already have a base.
Former Parisian David Beckham is also one of the co-owners of the Florida franchise and the Englishman has made an appearance in recent days at Camp des Loges, PSG’s training center, where he was able to pose with ” La Pulga” for some pictures.
“I’m not going to deny that there is truth to the rumors of an interest in Lionel Messi,” Inter Miami coach Phil Neville admitted to The Times in late February. “For MLS, it would be a decisive contribution.”
