PARIS — Lionel Messi will start Paris Saint-Germain's Ligue 1 home game against AC Ajaccio on Saturday after returning to training following a club-imposed suspension, coach Christophe Galtier said on Friday.
"I spoke with him on Tuesday to see what his mindset was and I found him very determined to play... He will start tomorrow," Galtier told a press conference.
Lionel Messi's future is the biggest telenovela coming from the transfer rumor machinery these days, with several sources claiming the Argentine star has secured a gargantuan contract with Saudi side Al-Hilal. I mean, you can go out there on that thing called the internet and you'll be swarmed with "done deal" headlines.
But is it really done?
Lionel Messi is training with Paris Saint-Germain again, the Ligue 1 team said on Monday, after the forward was suspended for making a trip to Saudi Arabia and missing a training session as a result.
French media reported that Messi was suspended for two weeks after an unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia when he was supposed to train with the squad the day after the Ligue 1 leaders' 3-1 defeat to Lorient last month.
The latest chapter of Lionel Messi’s unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia came on Friday when he posted a video on his Instagram story of him apologizing to his teammates. The Messi apology video is 37 seconds long in which he claims it was all a misunderstanding.
If you’re out of the loop on events, then here’s a quick timeline.
The fallout from Lionel Messi's unauthorized use of PTO to go on a quick jaunt to Saudi Arabia continued Wednesday with our transfer lord and savior Fabrizio Romano drawing the line on the Argentine's time in Paris.
"Messi will leave Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the season. There are no doubts about that anymore," Romano tweeted. "Behind the scenes, it's now understood that Leo's father Jorge communicated the decision to PSG already one month ago."
Europe's top soccer nations face a broadcast blackout for this year's Women's World Cup unless media can improve on their "disappointing" offers for the rights, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said.
Offers from "Big 5" European countries were not acceptable to football's world governing body and a "slap in the face" of the players and "all women worldwide", Infantino said.
The 'Big 5' nations are Britain, Spain, Italy, Germany and France.
Lionel Messi's future with PSG is wobbly. Fans are not enthusiastic about him, he doesn't look particularly thrilled about being there and talks regarding a possible return to FC Barcelona are gaining momentum. And then – on top of that – you have an unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia that is angering PSG teammates and the sporting hierarchy at the club.
PSG welcomed mid-table Lorient to the Parc des Princes on Sunday and slumped to a 3-1 defeat after Achraf Hakimi was sent off in the 20th-minute for a studs-up tackle on Darlin Yongwa that earned him a second yellow.
The massive spotlight on Paris Saint-Germain from earlier this season has flickered and remains on a dim setting. PSG are out of the Champions League, eliminated from the French Cup, lost Neymar for the rest of the season and have a relatively comfortable lead in Ligue 1.
There aren’t any big matches left on the schedule for the Paris club with just a handful of league matches against midtable or lower Ligue 1 sides. A sobering end to a season with so many expectations.
On Friday PSG defeated bottom of the table Angers 2-1 courtesy of a Kylian Mbappé brace.
Early Thursday morning, Amazon Prime Video Sport released a video on social media highlighting the difficulties and intricacies involved in being a top-flight match official. The clip showed Benoît Millot, a French referee taking control of a Ligue 1 match between Olympique Lyonnais and FC Nantes, and gave fans a great insight into what match officials go through over 90 minutes.
This is what referees really say to footballers during a game... ️