Lionel Messi scored a superb one-touch strike from outside the box in Paris Saint-Germain’s 2-1 win over Toulouse FC on Saturday at the Parc des Princes.
The goal from the 35-year-old marked the 39th goal from outside the box for the Argentine goal scorer since the 2017-18 season, with Messi having the most in that period in Europe’s top five leagues.
Additionally, it’s not only that Messi is leading that category; it’s nothing new, but what is eye-popping is that there’s no one close to scoring that amount of goals from outside the box to rival the veteran.
The next player closest to Messi in this timeframe is Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne; however, the Belgium international sits behind Messi with 19 goals from outside the box since the 2017-18 season.
Most league goals scored from outside the box in Europe's top five divisions since 2017/18:
39 – Lionel Messi
38
37
36
35
34
33
32
31
30
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19 – Kevin De Bruyne pic.twitter.com/raZGqtqEKf— Squawka (@Squawka) February 4, 2023
PSG will need Messi scoring these types of goals if they’re hoping to withstand the losses of Kylian Mbappe, who’s out for three weeks after he injured the left thigh at the level of the femoral biceps this week.
Meanwhile, Neymar Jr. continues his treatment and individual training sessions following pain in his groin. As a result, Messi will need to lead the attack, and so far, through two games, it appears he’s up for the task.
