Life for Lionel Messi as a PSG player is getting more complicated with each passing minute, and this latest decision by the club could push the 2022 World Cup winner further away from the French side with his contract about to expire.
The player has been suspended for the next two weeks after failing to show up to the team's training session on Monday. Initially, the players were supposed to have two days off after the Lorient game, but their 3-1 defeat prompted coach Christoph Galtier to summon all players for another training session. Messi had already taken a plane to Saudi Arabia as a tourism ambassador for the country, which prevented him from training with his club.
According to L'Equipe and RMC Sport, the Argentine ace had already asked for permission to make that trip, but he was denied that request by both the sporting director and Galtier himself. Regardless of their indications, Messi skipped the training session to honor his commercial commitment, which did not go down well within the club.
Messi's actions have prompted PSG to saction the player with a two-week ban from all training sessions, no payment for the next two weeks, and with his absence from the team's fixtures against Troyes and Ajaccio. Sources close to the club revealed that president Nasser Al-Khelaifi was behind this decision, as he "failed to honor his duties as an employee of the team," according to the French media outlets.
This decision by PSG's execs comes with Messi's deal set to expire in June. The club had initially offered Messi a contract extension last winter, but with the team's early exit from the UEFA Champions League and Messi's increasing wage demands, club owners seem to be preparing for life without the Argentine ace. While there could still be time to patch things up between the player and the club, it seems far-fetched to think that Messi will sit down to negotiate after being handed such a harsh punishment. Will this decision by Les Parisiens push the footballer back to Camp Nou or to other clubs? Only time will tell.
