Paris Saint-Germain forward Lionel Messi has struggled to adapt to French football. The 34-year-old has shown flashes, but his best moments with the capital club have come in the UEFA Champions League.
With the upcoming first-leg in the Round of 16 tie taking place next week, PSG hopes Messi can find the switch and be a significant part of their quest to advance past Los Blancos.
Ahead of their matchup, manager Mauricio Pochettino spoke with Cadena Ser, providing an update on how Messi is doing in the French capital. He also added that they expect to see the best version of the Argentine in this second half of the season.
“Leo is a genius. He is out of the ordinary. He is one of those players who come out every 100 years. Everything he has brought to the team has been incredible even more so with the circumstances he has been through since his arrival,” Pochettino said.
“He didn’t get a chance to take advantage because of those circumstances, but he still kept his cool. He is in his fullness, in his best moment. He is in an incredible moment of maturity and comes to this time of the season looking his best. I have no doubt that he will show his best version.”
PSG hopes to go on another deep run in this competition for a third straight year. With the addition of Messi, Les Parisiens hope the 34-year-old can be the final piece to the puzzle that will allow them to win the Champions League.
