The only way to be successful with the 36 year old version of him especially in the UCL would be for the players around him to compensate for his shortcomings off the ball and having a tight defence. Barcelona are currently not that team and honestly never have been. The defence has always been the achilles heel even when Messi was there in his first stint.
Lionel Messi | PSG Watch
- Thread starter Samid
- Start date
Was saying it a bit tongue in cheek. My main thought is that I agree with your analysis.
They've conceded 9 goals in the league this season. It wouldn't work (IMO) for reasons other than that.
Well, thats largely due to every team(except us) shooting straight at ter Stegen or outside the goal, no joke, thats basically it.
Look at the amount of chances Barca has conceded, look at expected goals against, sometimes yeah, you really can get lucky throughout an entire season.
Outside this freak season, Barca still almost always conceded less goals than us in the league the past 10-15 years or so though, so there is something about their style that works better for league play.
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Portuguese papers are saying it’s done deal to Saudi.
It’s all about the money, never enough.
It’s all about the money, never enough.
He's like 80 years, understandable that he wants a big paycheck at the end of his career.
I'm sure he'd be fine with what he already got, though...
At the reported money north of 300mil a year, everyone and their dog would go to Saudi considering his situation.
If people think his situation is different to Ronnie's, they're wearing elephant glasses.
He is slow, can't run, press, can no longer dribble like he used to and is a -1 for 80% of the game at 36 years of age. He does not have the legs in him to go to a top club in EPL or LaLiga and just wants a nice retirement, what's wrong in that?
It’s the country he’s choosing to go to that’s wrong.
Exactly. It’s a lot of money, most would do the same but where he is going feels wrong.
Going to Saudi? How lame
Indeed
With regards to £££...It's true for the majority of people isn't it?
If you earn £20k p/y, you probably want to earn £40. If you earn £100k p/y, you want £200k p/y etc. Same goes for if you're worth £10m, you'd invest and try to increase that portfolio to £15m.
Just because they're millionaires doesn't mean they don't want to earn more.
And you also need to remember this will be his final pay day. Once he retires, his income will reduce immensely and this has to set him up for life - and YES, I know he already has enough to last 500 people a lifetime etc etc.
Good on him and he deserves it. I also think his body has probably had enough and he realises he can't hack another 2 years at Barca / PSG.
Its lame he's going there.
But he's won the world cup and has nothing more to prove.
But he's won the world cup and has nothing more to prove.
Read that La Liga has given green light for the Messi transfer on the premise Barca generates €100m in transfer revenue. He shall also get a share of the revenue he brings to the club. Spanish media are apparently claiming that the Saudi deal is off the table because of that. Sounds completely different to the reports that it is a done deal.
So it's a certainty he's going back to Barca then? I would go outside and check if a Portuguese paper told me the sky was blue.
Pure speculation and the typical click baits. Messi's agent, that is, his father, has already said that there is no written or verbal agreement with anyone. They are going to wait until the end of the season to see what they do.
Even though Michael Owen is cringe i csn remember him writing his feelings about being whistled at by Newcastle fans. It was something like "Its Newcastle, i honestly dont give a shit". I can image that Leo truly couldn't care less about being whistled at by PSG fans at this stage of his career.
PSG fans got entitled once Qatar bought them, now they think that they deserve everything cause they can afford players like Messi,Neymar, and Mbappe.
They should be grateful that Zarkozy made the move for Qatar to buy PSG, so they aren't midtable team anymore that can't even get in european spots.
Psg fans who whistled him are idiots
Messi is the GOAT and you have to respect him
But he has done nothing for PSG on a football level
The only 3 months where he was good was when he prepared for the world cup. He was pretty bad before and after this period
And this 3 months period proves that he still could do it. Just that he didn’t care
It was such a poor decision to take him and waste 2 years of prime Mbappe
Messi is the GOAT and you have to respect him
But he has done nothing for PSG on a football level
The only 3 months where he was good was when he prepared for the world cup. He was pretty bad before and after this period
And this 3 months period proves that he still could do it. Just that he didn’t care
It was such a poor decision to take him and waste 2 years of prime Mbappe
I’d argue Messi has been better than mbappe this season, nobody has more goals and assists in Europe than Messi. If anything it is crazy how little criticism mbappe gets because he is French
PSG is making the mistake of not building a team, they rather buy stars and past it players.
PSG Sheiks are all about selling t-shirts.
A fecking disgrace if he goes to Saudi Arabia. He'll literally be a shiny toy (usefull dodgy moral idiot) for the Saudi King to flash around.
Going from "regular soap" sportswashing to pure bleach.....The greed has no limits.
At least he won't be winning any more Ballon d'ors.
Going from "regular soap" sportswashing to pure bleach.....The greed has no limits.
At least he won't be winning any more Ballon d'ors.
He still 1 of the 2 main favourites to ein the next Ballon D'Or. I think Haaland will clinch it though. Breaking all scorings records in his first season in the PL is just too much to ignore even though Messi winning it for having a good season at psg and a iconic wc. Also he's already won it 7 times so its not like he's ever been overlooked too much or stuff like that.
Is that much different than going to Qatar or playing for qatar owned clubs like psg or City? He's 36 soon and its all about milking money. Xavi went to Qatar. Was there really moral outrage? Ronnie is a laughing stock in Saudi but thats because he literally said he would never go there and then 1,5 months later he did and tried to big it up rather than just admitting its kind of a semi retirement for most players without having to say uts milking money.
I think what Messi need to accept is the reality of playing under shadow of bossy Mbappe and disrespectful booing of their home fans if he stay at PSG when before his retirement. Wasn’t really enjoyable ending of his career there.
And I simply don’t believe Barca is right move for him at this stage of his career for multiple reasons.
I mean he has won 7 or 8 Ballon D’or, won a WC and Copa, and everything at club level. Don’t think it’s too wrong going to Saudi for his pre-retiring years to earn more oil money there. Isn’t he currently tourism ambassador of Saudi? It’s all just the same - milking as much money as he could before calling it a day.
Messi hasnt playing in anyones shadow this season, he just more of a nr. 10. His job is to service Mpabbe and nick some goals himself anyway. But i think it be a bit sad to retire from european football at PSG, but he's won everything there is to win now. The only reason he should go to Barca is so he can retire from European football there, but its not like Maradona retired at Napoli, Pele at Santos or Cryuff at Ajax or Barcelona. I think he"ll just go for the money, he's out of milage and has nothing left to prove like Cristiano.
I don't get that reasoning. Seems to me you want him to go into semi retirement because it sheds a better light on a certain someone's decision to go there.
I also can't understand why somebody wants a player like him to go to Saudi Arabia to begin with. I would have preferred Cristiano to stay in Europe as well. I mean, it's hard to say no to these sums but a superstar player going back to his home club, giving up on a €300m deal to play for €15m should definitely be more appealing to everyone with even an ounce of football romanticism.
I think this may not be the best way to put it, but It’s funny his ending moment in Europe would be quite similar to Ronaldo - disrespect by his home fans, getting banned/fined by his own club, heading towards Saudi for big money move - all he need to do next is an interview with Piers Morgan bitching PSG perhaps.
There is no beheading or genocide going on in Qatar or the Emirates, despite poor human rights records. The Saudi Regime is a lot worse than them. Going from PSG (with a chance to play UCL and playing in a top 5 league) to the Saudi Pro league is a pretty huge leap on the sportswashing scale, yes. What could possibly interest him from a sports perspective there? This goes for Ronaldo too of course, while other mercinaries going there has lower profiles and isn't as handy tools for the regime though. Messi and Ronaldo going there for shitloads of money is literally the biggest sportwashing scandal in the history of sports so far. A total disgrace for both of them and should taint both their legacies badly. Xavi went to Qatar before the awareness around sportswashing was raised to the levels it is today. Today anyone with half a brain and a hair of moral sense knows signing record huge, high profile, contracts with clubs in these countries is sportswashing, that it's problematic and wrong, that it directly supports these absolute monarchy regimes and that it's witnessing about an extremely dodgy moral. Shame on them for doing this totally knowingly of what they are being part of.
Imagine being the best footballer in the world, playing football on the highest level, on the biggest stage and then go on to play "backyard" football to promote a regime with horrible human rights records, where women is less worth than men, where you're not allowed to believe in what you want, say what you want or love who you want, where you get beheaded by sword for blasphemi, get prison for life for retweeting the wrong tweets or get assassinated if you speak directly against the King or his family.
Isnt it bit like how much fuel he has left in his tank to play at the highest level? Also about "retiring on a high". Going into semi retirement after winning the WC and possibly a 8th Balon D'or is about as good a ending you can have at 36.
The idiots are the people who look to footballers as being moral examples. Especially if there exists people who think that all those things you mentioned are suddenly super cool because they pay Ronaldo's and Messi's wages.
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Do you really think football players think about the morals of stuff when they're paid 200-300 mil a year? Are you even serious?
People these days only expect morals from everyone, left, right and center. Public persons should be the last, absolute last ones to be examples for absolutely any fecking thing. How can someone you don't know be a fecking example?
It's so simple, he goes, collects the money, lives his life, as most people should do.
Well you seems wanting him to move back to Barca instead and taking 1/20th of salary he could make in Saudi. I think that’s fair on fans perspective.
But let’s be realistic, at some stage in the near future, he would decline sharply too, due to inevitable aging/when his legs are gone. Would it be really good scene to watch when it reached to a that point, when undroppable Messi hindering the progress/result for Barcelona, or when unhappy Messi sitting on the bench being pictured all over the headlines every other weeks?
Even if we pretend that won’t happen anytime soon, we all know Barca is currently struggling with their finance and compliance with FFP rules, and registration of their best young players. Besides, they are also currently facing corruption charges which could possibly end up in worst ever consequence in football.
Should Messi really need to risk his final years putting himself in such mess?
And let’s not forget Messi does care his money more than you thought of him - his controversial 550m contract with Barca, his infamous tax fraud, and his current big money contract with Saudi on ambassador role.
The circus is a bit different. Messi has no real history with PSG and hasnt been slagging off his team mates or manager in the time he's been there. Ronaldo spent 7.5 seasons at United and turned into a iconic player there. Messi doing an interview with Piers would be awesome. Especially if it was all in Spanish.
Do people forget Messi lifted the fecking wc trophy wearing a sith robe? Of course he's evil. Oh and the whole tax evasion thing.
Bisht please
It's Mbappe who has wasted his own prime years, as has Neymar by playing for PSG and playing in France in their prime. You play in ligue one when you are just beginning or for PSG's money when you are ending your career. As Messi has done.
BTW Mbappe has been most shit this season and thus has nothing to do with Messi.