Lionel Messi is not done with football yet and did not move to Paris Saint Germain to enjoy the beauty of Paris but to help the club make history.
Since PSG was established on 12 August 1970, which is 50 years ago, the French club is yet to win the most prestigious club trophy which is the UEFA Champions League title.
They have won every other domestic title that is there to win in France multiple times. But they came close to winning the Champions League once in the history of the club.
That happened in the 2019-2020 season when the former coach of the club, Thomas Tuchel led PSG to the final of the tournament against Bayern Munich but the German Bundesliga club ended their dream of winning the title.
PSG got to the final of the tournament in 2020 after years of investment by the club’s owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi. The Qatari billionaire has been buying established players from across the world and has changed a couple of coaches just to achieve this aim.
When it was announced that PSG have given Lionel Messi a two-year deal, it was clear to everyone that the sole mission of the club’s owner is to win the Champions League.
Like the club, Messi’s ambition is to also win the Champions League with PSG. Recall that Messi has won the Champions League title four times at FC Barcelona.
Unlike Messi’s career rival, Cristiano Ronaldo that has won the title at two different clubs – Manchester United and Real Madrid, Messi is having his first chance to achieve such a feat at PSG.
Recall that the 34-year-old Argentine football icon spent the last 21 years of his football career at Barcelona before his relationship with the Spanish club officially ended on June 30, 2021.
The world of football is watching closely to see how the record 6 times Ballon d’Or winner would help PSG to conquer Europe for the first time in 50 years.
When asked if PSG could win the Champions League, Messi said: “I think this team is already done and ready.
“There are some new transfers but they have been very close and they are ready.
“I just came here to help – I’ll give my best. My goal and my dream are to win this trophy again and I think that Paris is the best place to have a chance to win it again.
“It’s not easy. Sometimes you can have the best team in the world and you don’t win the Champions League – this is football.
“Paris has been so close to a victory in the Champions League. In the best competition, the best teams are playing.
“It’s very difficult to win it. You need a very united squad. This dressing room is very united but you also need luck.
“It’s a very special competition and that’s why it’s so beautiful and so important – we all want to win this competition.”
🤩❤️💙 Welcome, Leo Messi! #PSGxMESSI pic.twitter.com/qxIbjLWFaS
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) August 11, 2021
Lionel Messi revealed that Neymar was important in his move to PSG
Lionel Messi and Neymar have become very close friends despite not playing together for the past four years. Recall that they both played at Barcelona between 2013 and 2017.
Years after leaving Barcelona, Neymar has always craved to play alongside Messi again. The Brazilian winger even tried to return to Barcelona because of Messi but he was not able to do so.
Hence, when Messi could not continue his legendary journey at FC Barcelona, Neymar saw that as an opportunity to play with Messi again by influencing him to join PSG ahead of other suitors.
“I’ve got some friends here in the dressing room,” Messi said. “When you see the squad you really want to play with them.
“We had contact and Neymar, of course, did a lot and was important.
“The whole dressing room and the staff influenced my decision. When we saw it was possible, the first thing we did was talk to them and Pochettino. We’ve known each other for a long time and we are close, in a way.
“It’s been very easy since the very beginning. All the squad and the staff did a lot to help me choose this club.”
A new 💎 in Paris!
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) August 10, 2021
PSGxMESSI ❤️💙 pic.twitter.com/scrp1su9a6
