Messi travels to Saudi Arabia while others train in Paris

Something is brewing in Paris, but to be quite honest, there is always some sort of unrest at the PSG training ground or at the headquarters, and it usually starts with their elimination from the Champions League. After that disappointment, usually, the media are reporting on some troubles, and every season ends in a gloomy mood. And this season, it’s the same story. The club is on the verge of yet another coaching change, along with a change of personnel. And on a personal level, Lionel Messi is the story for this season, and he just (un)attentionally made another headline.

On Sunday, PSG angered their fans with another home loss, this time from Lorient, and recorded their sixth league defeat, two more than under Mauricio Pochettino. After that, coach Christopher Galtier ordered the team to show up on Monday morning for the training, but one player was missing yesterday – Lionel Messi. The Argentinian failed to show up (even thou he got the invitation), and travelled to Saudi Arabia to do a commercial, as he is bound by contract to promote the country’s tourism. After all, he got 30 million euros to do the job. And that led to another series of reports, as some of his teammates were surprised by that trip, while the fans were outraged to hear that one of their best players left the club to finish some personal business after a home loss to Lorient. On top of that, they already have a ‘pick’ on him since his performance after winning the World Cup in Qatar were often sub-par, and L’Equipe also stated that he didn’t have the club’s permission to do so.

Mbappe quick thinking not enough for the Parisians - Lorient victorious in the French capital

On the other hand, Spanish “Marca”, with good connections with Messi’s entourage, published the same news but gave another explanation. According to their sources, the club was informed that he needs to travel, and even thou the situation was not so good after a defeat, he couldn’t postpone his trip since he did already twice this season, every time after a defeat. This would be the third time, but the season of high temperatures begins in Arabia, and Messi couldn’t postpone his trip anymore. Also, the Monday training was not initially scheduled but was added by coach Galtier on Sunday, and Leo couldn’t cancel the trip. Whichever version is a true one, it doesn’t really matter much, as it seems that the fairytale between the player and the club is about to end this June.

LIGUE 1 - MATCHDAY 33

Friday

Strasbourg - Olympique Lyon 1-2 (1-2)

/Sanson 15 - Lukeba 32, Caqueret 36/

Saturday

Lille - Ajaccio 3-0 (3-0)

/Gomes 22, 33, Cabella 37/

Sunday

Monaco - Montpellier 0-4 (0-1)

/Nordin 28, 72, Maouassa 65, Mavididi 79/

Clermont - Reims 1-0 (1-0)

/Kyei 4/

Troyes - Nice 0-1 (0-1)

/Boudaoui 2/

Rennes - Angers 4-2 (2-2)

/Gouiri 25, Hountondji 35 og, Doku 54, 84 - Bentaleb 19 pen, Niane 42/

PSG - Lorient 1-3 (1-1)

/Mbappe 29 - Le Fee 15, Yongwa 39, Dieng 89/

Olympique Marseille - Auxerre 2-1 (0-1)

/Under 75, Sanchez 77 - Toure 33/

Tuesday

22.00: (4.70) Toulouse (3.70) Lens (1.85)

Wednesday

22.00: (2.25) Brest (3.50) Nantes (3.40)

***odds are subject to change***