Lionel Messi does not in any way have an interest in dropping his current form after scoring two goals and two assists against Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League.
It was a one-sided dominance where Paris Saint-German defeated the Israel Champions by 7-2. The victory qualified the French Giants for the Champions League knockout stage.
Messi scored a goal in the 19th minute from outside the box after receiving a pass from Mbappe.
When Maccabi Haifa lost the ball in the middle of the field in the 35th minute, the offensive trio of Lionel Messi, Mbappe, and Neymar promptly teamed up.
Neymar scored a fantastic goal after Mbappe passed the ball to Messi, who chipped it over the defense.
Lionel Messi scored an incredible goal in the 44th minute of the first half, dribbling past two Maccabi Haifa defenders.
Lionel Messi had a chance to score the night’s third goal in the 76th minute, but Kylian Mbappe’s pass was difficult for him to reach and he played it over the crossbar.
Lionel Messi advanced to the right wing in the 82nd minute, cut inside, dribbled past a right back, and released the ball to Carlos Soler, who fired his first attempt on goal in the one-sided game.
PSG will finish as the winner of Group H if they defeat Juventus on November 2, 2022.
Lionel Messi now has 129 Champions League goals compared to Cristiano Ronaldo’s 140 goals. Messi is just 12 goals shy of breaking Ronaldo’s record.
Ronaldo is 37 years old and very eager to play in the Champions League and may force a move in January to a football club playing in the tournament just to extend his numerous Champions League records.
There was another record for the Argentine, who, at the age of 35 years and 123 days, is now the oldest player in Champions League history to score and assist twice in a single game.
Lionel Messi is the first player in Europe’s top five leagues to reach goals (11) and assists (12) in all competitions this season.
Ronaldo has achieved that on many occasions while he was at Real Madrid, where he was at the peak of his career before he left Madrid for Juventus in 2018.
Meanwhile, for the third time, Paris Saint-Germain scored seven goals in a UEFA Champions League game, also doing so in November 2017 and in October 2000 (7-2 vs. Rosenborg) (7-1 vs Celtic).
Only one of Paris Saint-Germain’s last 33 home UEFA Champions League group stage games ended in a defeat (Win 26, Draw 6), and that defeat came against Manchester United in October 2020.
What Next For Lionel Messi and PSG
PSG will welcome Troyes as they continue their impressive form and in bid to defend their Ligue 1 title this season. Lionel Messi is expected to score goals and provide assists for his teammates as usual.
Paris Saint-German is currently in first place in the Ligue 1 table, while Troyes is in eleventh place. Hence, it is expected to be another routine win for PSG.
