Paris St Germain forward Lionel Messi is a doubt for the first leg of their round of 16 UEFA Champions League game against Bayern Munich due to a hamstring problem, French sports daily L’Equipe reported on Friday.
Messi played the full 90 minutes of PSG’s 2-1 defeat to Olympique Marseille in the French Cup on Wednesday but later felt pain in his hamstring, the report said.
It added that the 35-year-old would miss PSG’s Ligue 1 trip to AS Monaco on Saturday, three days before they host Bayern.
Messi, who helped Argentina win the World Cup in December, has scored 15 goals in 25 games in all competitions for PSG this season.
The Parisian club are already without forward Kylian Mbappe for the game against the German champions after he picked up a thigh injury last week.
The second leg will be held in Munich on March 8.
After the loss in Coup de France, PSG’s poor show on the field infuriated football fans. The defending Ligue 1 winners were lambasted on social media after putting up a horrendous show against Olympique de Marseille.
Former French winger Jerome Rothen also opened up on Messi’s performance in the round of 16 fixture. In a conversation with RMC Sports via The Mirror, former PSG star blasted Messi, stating that a renewal of his contract is a bad idea.
“Messi’s extension is bulls***, already in terms of numbers. Managing the three is complicated. Afterwards, there is the wage bill. And we saw that PSG is stuck with financial fair play. Because the wage bill has exploded. There, you have the opportunity to recover a large sum of money because Messi’s salary is It can allow you to recruit and improve your squad. For all that, it’s a very bad idea to extend Leo Messi,” Jerome Rothen was quoted as saying.
In fact, Messi is being rumoured to leave PSG amid interest from Barcelona, Inter Miami CF, and Saudi Arabian sides.
Despite all this criticism, it is important to note that Lionel Messi has recorded 15 goals and 14 assists in 25 matches across all competitions for PSG this season. The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner left his childhood club Barcelona to sign for PSG in the summer of 2021.
In their next assignment, PSG will be up against AS Monaco in Ligue 1 on Saturday.
(With inputs from Agencies)
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