Lionel Messi moved to PSG last week and fans were expecting to watch him in action when PSG travel to Brest on Friday.
Even though coach Mauricio Pochettino said in his presser that he has yet to decide on Messi, the 34-year-old will not fly with the rest of the team for the away game. If training at PSG takes its normal course, the Argentinean superstar will make his Ligue 1 debut on Sunday, 29 August, when PSG play Reims away.
Messi only had a few sessions with the rest of the team and Pochettino didn’t want to risk anything by accelerating his rhythm of preparation. The coach said Messi had no issues with his integration in the group, with his good friends Neymar, Di Maria, Paredes, or Verratti making sure he adapts quickly.
“Everyone knows what Messi is capable of bringing to the team,” Pochettino said in front of the media. “We are aware of what Messi represents. He is very positive, he is adapting really quickly. We are happy with what he brings here.”
Neymar and Paredes weren’t included in the squad for Brest either, but European champion Gianluigi Donnarumma could start for the first time in goal. Di Maria and Marquinhos are also expected to play.
Messi: from training to discovering Paris
Since moving to the French capital, Messi has been living at Royal Monceau, a five-star hotel situated close to the Arc de Triomphe in central Paris. Hundreds of fans wander around the area every day hoping to see the six-time Ballon d’Or winner and take a picture with him or grab an autograph. Messi is tasting life in Paris with his family. Leo, his wife Antonela, and the couple’s three children dined at Cesar restaurant close to their hotel. According to the French paper Le Parisien, the place is popular among PSG’s players, who regularly go there for dinner with their families.
Even though PSG will miss Messi and Neymar against Brest on Friday, they are big favorites to win the encounter. The Paris powerhouse are at -417 for a win away which would put them on the maximum number of points, nine, from their first three games of the season. Without competition from Neymar and Messi, Kylian Mbappe is the favorite to open the scoring, at +188. Mauro Icardi follows at +320.