Lionel Messi extended his Ligue 1 scoreless streak during Paris Saint-Germain’s home fixture against Lille OSC. The Argentine forward recorded two shots during his time on the pitch before being subbed off at halftime due to a minor muscle issue.
Overall, PSG sporting director Leonardo is not much concerned with Messi’s early sluggish run at the club, which has included zero goals scored over five matches played in Ligue 1 this season. As Leonardo noted following PSG’s 2-1 win over Lille (via L’Equipe), he is much confident in Messi’s ability to soon turn around his form in the ongoing campaign.
“Messi arrived and, with these stories of international break, spent his first two months more in the national team than in Paris,” Leonardo said. “When you travel so much, it is logical that there is a muscle discomfort. It’s the same for Neymar, who played a great game tonight. He had the sense of sacrifice, of desire. It’s the same with Di Maria and tonight they were decisive. We are not talking about Danilo who is doing an incredible game.
“I’m not worried because I see what happens every day. We want to pretend that we don’t know anything, that we learn things like this, that they are partying right and left. But it’s not the truth, we know everything that’s going on. If the players do something wrong, we talk to them. And that’s the way it’s always been.”
On the other hand, Messi has had success in UEFA Champions League play with the Ligue 1 giants this season, which has included a trio of goals scored in the group stage. It remains to be seen whether the Argentine will take part in the team’s upcoming Champions League return group stage matchup against Bundesliga side RB Leipzig.
