Paris Saint-Germain head coach praised Lionel Messi after an amazing performance on his return from the World Cup celebrations.
How was everything?
The Argentine forward played a vital role in setting up the first goal and scored the second as Paris Saint-Germain beat Angers 2-0 at the Parc des Princes. It was not the best result from the leaders of the league, but Lionel, as usual, was impressive, and that evening the forward turned out to be decisive.
Manager Paris Saint-Germain said after the match that today they saw the best player in the world again. According to Christophe Galtier, Lonel Messi wanted to play, came back physically well and when they have him on the field, they are guaranteed a chance. He says that Lionel Messi was able to play the whole match, which is very good.
A little about the topic
The Argentine player returned to the Paris Saint-Germain side after an extended spell away from the club following his World Cup victory with Argentina. And Lionel Messi didn’t waste time getting involved with his team, proving important in building up to the opening of Paris Saint-Germain within five minutes. Lionel Messi also scored a perfect second to seal things up.
Star player Lionel Messi received a warm welcome on his first post-World Cup outing for PSG, much to the delight of the PSG manager.
What did Galtier say about Lionel Messi?
Lionel Messi was given an extended break on the back of propelling his country to world glory in Qatar, with a return to training done on January 4th. The Argentine has since been weakened in the Paris Saint-Germain fold, but Lionel Messi spent little time getting back to work as he was among the targets in Wednesday’s 2-0 win over the Angers – with home supporters cheering him back with open arms despite Argentina abandoning France’s World Cup dreams during an epic final meeting in the Middle East.
The Paris Saint-Germain manager then told reporters that Lionel Messi was given the welcome he deserves: “Thank you and congratulations to the supporters for welcoming him. Believe me, it warms his heart.”
Despite almost a month-long weekend on the back of his Ballon d’Or at the World Cup final, Lionel smoothly returned to competitive action alongside Co and Neymar against Angers. Christophe added that Lionel recovered well and had many sessions with them. According to him, Lionel Messi seems calm, easy, very suitable on a physical level. Obviously, with or without Messi, this gives another option. The Argentine seemed to him good physically. Galtier spoke to him part-time and as the match progressed to find out how he felt physically. The Argentine felt good. It was important for Lionel to play fast again and for the team to find Messi in the heart of the game. The fact that he was able to play the whole game is even better.
What will happen after this?
With Lionel back up to speed and Kylian Mbappé poised to be absorbed back into Galtier’s squad after being given a rest after his own World Cup exploits, Paris Saint-Germain – who sit six points clear at the top of the Ligue 1 table – will be in action again on Sunday when take on a trip to Rennes.