Lionel Messi is the object of criticism at PSG and in France. And yes, it doesn’t matter when you read it. In fact, being shot by critics was what was expected after the undeniable failure that it represents for a team made by the force of millions, being eliminated from the Champions League, his true obsession.
The first on the list was the newspaper LÉquipe, the same newspaper that did not hesitate to give him the Ballon d’Or, no matter what or how his season was.
The prestigious medium used an image of the Argentine with his head down with the title “irrational”, in reference to the magnitude of the defeat of the all-star team that once again falls short of its main objective.
This Thursday, in its printed edition, it went further: on the photo of Karim Benzema, author of the hat-trick that qualified Real Madrid to the quarterfinals of the Champions League, he used the word “Messiah”, a definitive reference to the last name of the man in the that an exhibition was expected on his return to the Santiago Bernabéu stadium.
Meanwhile, Le Parisien gave him a 4 rating and explained: “It’s still not the best version of a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner. But, better than at the start, he was fair in his passes without being decisive in front of goal. He vanished in minutes,” he commented.
Messi, in effect, filled with expectation a hobby that is still waiting for the millionaire investment in his scandalous salary to be seen on the pitch. Before him he earned everything locally, so he won’t be able to save the furniture with a French title. They took him to the Champions League and today he is out. Summary of his contribution to PSG.
They ask for Pochettino’s head
To Messi’s consolation, if there is one, there is Mauricio Pochettino, also an Argentine who is already considered in France as a former PSG coach.
Le Parisien isn’t thinking about it “Beyond this triple failure, the former Tottenham player has never managed to give his PSG a clear and attractive game identity, one of the missions entrusted to him when he was hired to replace Thomas Tuchel. It is his Achilles heel, and the reason that had pushed the Parisian leaders to go prospect elsewhere at the end of last year and specifically with Zinedine Zidane ”, he publishes.
And it is not only this debacle in the Champions League but also the elimination in the Coupe de France, which means that only Ligue 1 remains in the season, in which they have a 13-point advantage. Too little for such an investment.
L’Equipe recalls that the arrival of the DT was ordered in Doha, where the owners reside, and not in the office of Leonardo, sports director, who preferred Allegri. Although the Brazilian himself recently said in RMC that “we should not throw everything away. We must not start from scratch after each defeat”, this does seem like the end of the cycle, a year and a half before the expiration of the contract. There is money to compensate, fortunately. But is it what will make PSG a true team? That is the main discussion.
