PSG needs Messi with Bayern Munich coming up on Feb. 14 in the first leg of their round-of-16 game in the Champions League.
PSG needs Messi with Bayern Munich coming up on Feb. 14 in the first leg of their round-of-16 game in the Champions League.
Paris Saint Germain coach Christophe Galtier said after Lionel Messi’s match winning performance against Toulouse that the Argentine superstar is ‘relieved of certain duties on the pitch’ so that he can play more freely.
“Messi was a very important driving force for us, given his goal and the chances he created. I’m asking the team to play for him and to work for him. He must be relieved of certain duties. His teammates must intensify their efforts to win the ball back and to create spaces, so that he can spray around his passes which are so rare,” Galtier said.
In the match against Toulouse, Messi struck with a typical curling strike in the 57th minute following a move with Morocco right back Achraf Hakimi, who drew PSG level late in the first half after free kick specialist Branco van den Boomen put Toulouse ahead in the 20th.
PSG were without injured forwards Kylian Mbappé and Neymar and relied heavily on Messi, who hit the post during stoppage time. Without Messi, who has hit 98 goals for Argentina, PSG would have struggled more.
PSG needs Messi with Bayern Munich coming up on Feb. 14 in the first leg of their round-of-16 game in the Champions League.
Mbappé is out for at least three weeks after sustaining a left thigh tear. Neymar is having treatment for a sore adductor and missed his second straight game. PSG’s injury woes increased when Portugal midfielder Renato Sanches went off injured early with a thigh injury.
