IS MESSI & MBAPPE A POWERFUL COMBINATION THAT CAN LEAD PSG TO GLORY?
IS MESSI & MBAPPE A POWERFUL COMBINATION THAT CAN LEAD PSG TO GLORY?
By Rashmi Goel
With the two superstars dominating the World Cup, PSG will be hoping they are able to join forces and help them conquer Europe together. After Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe's phenomenal FIFA World CupTM shows, Paris St. Germain will have to challenge Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe in the new year to follow their impressive feats with a Champions League title. With European glory in its sights, the Qatar-owned club faces a tough last-16 tie against Bayern Munich, with two games scheduled against the German champions in February and March, and this will be the club's first appearance in the Champions League since 2008. It can be argued that PSG had a successful World Cup because both Mbappe and Messi were recognized as outstanding players and both won the Golden Boot and Golden Ball prizes throughout the tournament. Having watched Mbappe and Messi in opposition to France and Argentina in Sunday's World Cup final, it is likely that they will soon be replaced by the sight of them playing together, perhaps even in the month of July.
A Ligue 1 game is scheduled for December 28 at PSG, and it remains to be seen if coach Christophe Galtier will be able to have both players available for that match since Messi will be heading back to Argentina to celebrate in the coming days. The PSG football club addressed the two main protagonists of today's final, Messi and Mbappe respectively, in a series of social media messages, where Messi scored twice to win the trophy, while Mbappe hit a hat-trick, but ended up beaten by PSG. In a statement, the club stated that the two Parisians had put on an extraordinary final. The winner of this final had to be one of them. You will forever be remembered as one of the greatest footballers of all time, @leomessi," he said. Thanks for all these emotions, @leomessi, and thank you so much @k.mbappe for sharing them with us. It has been a heroic act on your part. Throughout this World Cup, you have left a lasting impression with your talent. You should be proud." Despite the French envy that might be felt towards Messi, there is no doubt that it will soon diminish with a photo showing Mbappe and Messi touching hands during the game receiving plenty of love from PSG's players.
There was a picture shared by Nuno Mendes and Danilo Pereira, both of whom added emojis of hands applauding the moment. In response to Messi's success, Marco Verratti wrote on Instagram: "You deserve it, friend. Congratulations." To Mbappe, he wrote: "Head high. You have proven to the entire world that you are a phenomenon." "Congratulations" was the message sent by defender Juan Bernat to Messi, while "Bravo to you as well" he added to Mbappe's message. In a message addressed to his compatriot Lionel Messi, Mauricio Pochettino praised Argentina coach Tito Scaloni for the job he has done, saying, "Congratulations Lionel. Thank you!" Adding to that, Pochettino said, "Deserved @leomessi. Thank you!"
With each incoming coach knowing that winning domestic silverware is not enough to fulfill the remit of this job, PSG sees the Champions League as the holy grail of football for them, with winning the Champions League becoming the footballing holy grail now. It was the French who came closest to lifting the trophy in 2020, losing out in a final against Bayern Munich in which Kingsley Coman scored the only goal in Lisbon. In Sunday's penalty shootout at the World Cup, France's Kingsley Coman was one of two players to miss from the spot. The other was Aurelien Tchouameni, who missed from the spot as well. In light of Messi and Mbappe's outstanding performances over the last month, PSG may never be in a better position to strike for continental glory in the coming months. In the meantime, there is another matter brewing, which is the possibility of Messi and Mbappe's club alliance being in the final stages before they speak to each other again. There is a possibility that PSG may remove uncertainty over Messi's future as soon as the end of this season as his two-year contract is due to expire at the end of this season. After the World Cup, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, who has been linked with a possible end-of-season switch to Inter Miami, announced the club would discuss the matter after the World Cup had ended.
