Marseille 2-1 PSG: Paris Saint-Germain has been eliminated from the Coupe de France tournament. For the star ensemble, things went wrong in the eighth finals on a visit to Olympique Marseille.
Lionel Messi and Neymar played two of the three biggest stars. PSG coach Christophe Galtier had to miss the injured Kylian Mbappé and that loss made itself felt. Without the depth of the French superstar, the visitors only slightly shook Marseille. L’OM threatened with quick counterattacks and took the lead in the 31st minute. Sergio Ramos made a mistake in a duel with Cengiz Ünder and Alexis Sánchez made the 1-0 from the subsequent penalty kick.
Ramos corrected his mistake by equalizing on the stroke of half time. Neymar curled the ball perfectly on the head of the Spaniard at a corner, who knocked compatriot Pau López and thus made it 1-1.
The equalizer was supposed to be the start of the turnaround for PSG, but the leader of France, who already lost points three times in the competition in January, again looked vulnerable in the second half. Although Marseille also had some luck with the goal that resulted in the victory. The ball fell well through a PSG defender for Ruslan Malinovsky, who lashed out without hesitation. Gianluigi Donnarumma made a brave attempt to turn the ball, but the power and precision were too much for him: 2-1.
Former PSG player Jérôme Rothen thinks PSG should not extend Messi’s contract
Lionel Messi’s contract expires next summer, but his club Paris Saint-Germain will try to keep the Argentine on board for longer. According to former PSG player Jérôme Rothen, that is a very bad idea.
In the summer of 2021, Messi made the switch from Barcelona to PSG. The French top club pays Messi a huge salary and according to Rothen he is nowhere near worth it. “The extension attempt is a joke,” he tells RMC Sport. It is very difficult to manage Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Messi. In addition, his salary is also very high.”
In addition, according to Rothen, Messi has not brought what he should bring. Rothen remarked, “When I look at what he radiates, I also do not understand that Messi wants to extend here. He makes no effort for this club. He never thanks the fans, but walks straight into the dressing room with his head down. Even when he is sung to, there is no grateful gesture. He clearly has no appetite to invest in this project.”
