According to manager Christophe Galtier, Lionel Messi will depart Paris St. Germain at the conclusion of the current campaign.
The club's final Ligue 1 match of the season against Clermont on Saturday will be the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner's farewell outing.
Long predicted, the 35-year-old's exit from PSG after two seasons was formally announced by Galtier at a news conference on Thursday.
Galtier made the following statement, which was posted on the club's website, psg.fr: "I will take away that I had the opportunity of guiding the best football player ever, Leo Messi.
He'll play his final match at Parc des Princes on Saturday. I'm hoping he'll get the warmest welcome possible.
The World Cup champion from Argentina has helped the Parisians win two Ligue 1 championships, but despite some excellent stats this season, it seemed that his connection with the team had soured.
He was given a two-week suspension earlier this month for traveling to Saudi Arabia without permission.
Since then, he has been connected to moving to the Middle Eastern nation in the future, as well as to the US and a return to Barcelona.
Galtier was eager to acknowledge his contributions on the field.
"He has always been accessible and present in the training sessions," he remarked.He has consistently put the team's interests first despite comments or criticisms that I don't believe were merited in the slightest.
He is 35 years old, and the World Cup took place in the middle of the current campaign. If I'm incorrect about his statistics outside of the World Cup, then I believe he has 21 goals and 22 assists this season, which means he has (contributed) 43 times.”The iconic forward's two-year deal with Les Parisiens is set to expire this summer, and speculation over his future has been rife for quite some time.
Galtier has since confirmed the Argentine World Cup champion's future, having said in his pre-game news conference that this weekend's Ligue 1 match against Clermont Foot will mark the player's final game for the team.
blogpay
Total Comments: 0