Paris Saint Germain forward, Lionel Messi has set a record in the French Ligue 1 which would take a player like him to break. The 34-year-old Argentine football icon has become the first player in the history of the French League to provide three assists in a single match twice in a season.
For his over 16 years at FC Barcelona, Lionel Messi is known to most people in the football world as an assist king even though he was a prolific goalscorer during his days at the Spanish club.
Note that Lionel Messi started his professional football career at FC Barcelona in 2005. He stayed at the club until 2021 before he joined PSG on a free transfer after FC Barcelona failed to renew his contract due to financial complications.
Before he left FC Barcelona, Lionel Messi helped the Spanish giants to win a whopping 34 major titles including four UEFA Champions League titles and 10 La Liga titles.
Between 2005 and 2021, Lionel Messi provided 302 assists and scored a club record 672 goals in 777 games in all competitions. He was named La Liga’s highest goalscorer in eight separate seasons.
Hence, when he moved to French Ligue 1 he was expected to continue with such a form even though he has advanced in age (34-year-old).
Initially, he was heavily criticized because he could not score in the league for a series of games. The criticism did not stop even though he was providing assists for other players.
Fortunately for him, the record seven times Ballon d’Or winner is currently enjoying his game at the club. He has picked up an excellent form, especially in the last two league games.
The first time Lionel Messi proved to the followers of French Ligue 1 that he is still a king of assists was on November 28, 2022, when he provided three assists in PSG’s 3-1 league win over Saint Etienne.
Nearly five months after such an outstanding performance, Messi put up an outstanding show by providing his second three assists in a league game this season. This time around, he provided the assists in PSG’s 6-1 win over Clermont Foot on Sunday, April 10, 2022.
The assists Lionel Messi provided for Kylian Mbappe’s 80th-minute goal, Mbappe’s 19th-minute goal, and Neymar’s 6th-minute goal against Clermont Foot on Sunday have made the Argentine football icon the first player in the history of the French League to provide a hat-trick of assists in two different games in one season.
So far at PSG Messi has made 28 appearances in all competitions in which he scored 8 goals and provided 14 assists. His contract with the French club will expire on June 30, 2023.
Dani Alves wants to have the last dance with Lionel Messi at FC Barcelona
Lionel Messi’s former teammate at FC Barcelona, Dani Alves is hoping that the 34-year-old forward could return to Barca for them to play together for the last time in their football careers.
Dani Alves played with Lionel Messi at FC Barcelona between 2008 and 2016 before the 38-year-old Brazilian defender joined Paris Saint Germain on a free transfer.
Between September and November 2021, Alves was without a club but the coach of FC Barcelona, Xavi felt the veteran defender still has something to offer. The coach signed the Brazilian defender on November 12, 2021.
Since then, Alves has made just 10 appearances in which he scored a goal and provided 3 assists. Despite having such a limited game, the Brazilian defender whose contract with Barca will expire on June 30, 2022, wishes to play with Messi at Barca once again.
“I don’t know what he thinks or wants to do. He could come back for a little year with me for a ‘last dance’. Why not? There’s nowhere better than here. We cannot be better off than at Barça. He left and tried the experience. It’s time to return home if he wants”, Alves told Catalan media outlet Diario Sport.
10 minutes. 100 lob passes from Lionel Messipic.twitter.com/71XqKxFzif
— Messi Comps (@Lionel30Comps) April 8, 2022
