Lionel Messi

82 Articles

Messi’s Paris St Germain disappoint in Brugge draw

REUTERS BRUGGE, Belgium, Sept 15 - Lionel Messi failed to provide Paris St Germain with any sparkle as the Ligue 1 team's potent attacking trio lacked inspiration in a disappointing 1-1 draw at Club Brugge in their Champions League opener on Wednesday. Making his first start for the French team, the Argentine forward hit the woodwork but was otherwise far from his brilliant best alongside the hugely disappointing Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, who set up Ander Herrera for PSG's first-half opener before being

We’re not even a team yet, says PSG coach…

REUTERS Paris St Germain have been labelled as the side to beat in the Champions League since Lionel Messi joined during the close season but coach Mauricio Pochettino warned that he had not yet turned his stellar cast of players into a team. PSG signed Messi as a free agent from Barcelona to assemble a formidable attacking trio with France striker Kylian Mbappe and Brazil forward Neymar, but they have yet to show what they are capable of together. "We're not a team

Brazil v Argentina abandoned five minutes after kick-off after…

Brazil and Argentina's World Cup qualifier was abandoned just minutes after kick-off on Sunday after Brazilian health officials objected to the participation of three Argentine players they believe broke quarantine rules. The visitors walked off the pitch at the Corinthians Arena after the officials came out to stop the game. The dramatic intervention came hours after Brazil's health authorities had said four England-based players for Argentina had to quarantine. Although it did not name the four, the players with English Premier League clubs

Lionel Messi-led Argentina post comfortable win over Venezuela in…

ZEENEWS Lionel Messi started his first match since the final of the Copa America on July 10 and his flicks and jinks frequently ended with him being fouled as Venezuela struggled to contain him. Argentina extended their unbeaten run to 21 games on Thursday (September 2) with a comfortable 3-1 win over Venezuela in their World Cup qualifier in Caracas. Venezuela had beaten Argentina only once in 14 previous World Cup qualifiers and their hopes of doing it again on Thursday were snuffed

Messi’s PSG draw Guardiola’s Man City in Champions League…

REUTERS ISTANBUL, Aug 26 - Lionel Messi's new club Paris St Germain will play Manchester City, managed by the Argentine's former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola, after being drawn together in Champion's League Group A on Thursday. Messi joined Qatari-owned PSG, who will also face Bundesliga side RB Leipzig and Belgium's Brugge, from Barcelona this month after the Spanish side were unable to afford a new contract for the forward. The draw pits two of European soccer's wealthiest teams against each other once again

Lionel Messi joins Paris Saint-Germain on two-year deal after…

Star forward Lionel Messi has joined French giants Paris Saint-Germain on a two-year deal following his departure from FC Barcelona. Star forward Lionel Messi has joined French giants Paris Saint-Germain on a two-year deal following his departure from FC Barcelona. Messi, the 34-year-old Argentine forward, who recently bid a tearful goodbye to Nou Camp, where he spent 21 years of his life at, also has the option of a third year. The exact details of Messi's financial terms were not declared but it

Messi, Neymar to battle in dream Copa America final

RIO DE JANEIRO: Former Barcelona teammates Lionel Messi and Neymar will line up opposite each other in Saturday's (Jul 10) Copa America final looking to end a hoodoo that has also affected some of their countries' greatest players. Like Brazil's Pele and Diego Maradona of Argentina before them, neither Messi nor Neymar has ever won the Copa. That statistic will change for one of them in the dream final at Rio de Janeiro's iconic Maracana stadium. For six-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi, this

Messi free kick not enough as Argentina held to…

RIO DE JANEIRO: Argentina's Lionel Messi scored one of his trademark free-kicks in the first half but Eduardo Vargas equalized for Chile to leave honors even at 1-1 in their Copa America opener in Rio de Janeiro on Monday. Messi curled a superb free-kick into the corner of Claudio Bravo's net from 25 meters after 33 minutes. Chile equalized 13 minutes into the second half when Vargas followed up to head home the rebound after Arturo Vidal's penalty was tipped onto the bar

La Liga launches COVID-19 probe after Messi’s Barcelona party

BARCELONA: Spain's La Liga is investigating whether a party organised by Barcelona players at their captain Lionel Messi's home broke COVID-19 protocol. "We're looking into it," La Liga sources told AFP on Tuesday (May 4). Monday's meal brought together Barca players, some accompanied by their partners, at the Argentinian star's house, despite social distancing rules in the Catalonian capital outlawing groups of more than six to meet in private. The party may constitute "a possible breach of COVID-19 protocols", the source suggested. The

Messi nets twice in Barca turnaround over Valencia

VALENCIA, Spain: Lionel Messi led Barcelona to a quick-fire comeback to win 3-2 at Valencia on Sunday and keep the pressure on La Liga title rivals Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid. Barca fell behind in the 50th minute when Valencia defender Gabriel Paulista headed into an empty net from a corner after keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen had stumbled to the ground in his attempt to come for the ball. The Catalans, who had blown the chance to go top of the league with

Messi double powers Barca to big win over Getafe

BARCELONA: Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona crushed Getafe 5-2 on Thursday (Apr 22) to stay in the hunt for the La Liga title. Messi gave Barca an early lead with the help of a pin-point pass from Sergio Busquets but Getafe pulled level with an own goal by Clement Lenglet. The visitors then conceded a calamitous own goal when Sofian Chakla's backpass deceived keeper David Soria and trickled over the line. Messi extended Barca's lead before halftime, hitting the post then following

Lionel Messi breaks Barcelona appearance record

Lionel Messi broke the club's appearance record on Sunday as the Argentine featured in his 768th game for the Catalan giants. Messi celebrated in style, working his now famous magic in Barcelona's 6-1 victory over Real Sociedad, as he superseded the landmark set by former teammate and club legend Xavi Hernandez, who appeared 767 times for the club. Barcelonaa's official Twitter account dubbed the Argentine an "otherworldly player" and called his record-breaking appearance figure a "stratospheric number." Messi's eighth assist of the season

Lionel Messi surpasses Xavi to set Barcelona appearance record

Messi netted his league-leading 22nd and 23rd goals from inside the area in the 56th and 89th. Lionel Messi played his 768th match for Barcelona to surpass Xavi Hernández for the record number of club appearances. Messi and American defender Sergiño Dest scored two goals each as Barcelona easily beat Sociedad for its fifth consecutive league win — and ninth straight away from home. Griezmann opened the scoring in the 37th before Dest netted in the 43rd and 53rd minutes for his first

Koeman hopeful Barca’s ‘great future’ persuades Messi to stay…

Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman says Lionel Messi can have no doubts over the "great future" the club has after they bowed out of the Champions League with a spirited performance at Paris St-Germain. Messi, 33, who has won the competition with Barcelona on four occasions, outlined his frustrations at the Nou Camp last summer and was heavily linked with a move to PSG prior to this last-16 tie. However, while the result saw Barca fail to reach the last eight of the competition

Messi scores twice as Barcelona dispatch Elche

MADRID: Lionel Messi soared past Luis Suarez to become La Liga's top scorer on Wednesday (Feb 24) by adding his 17th and 18th goals of the season in a much-needed 3-0 victory for Barcelona over Elche. Barca had followed up last week's crushing Champions League loss to Paris Saint-Germain by drawing at home to Cadiz on Sunday but eased the strain with a comfortable win at the Camp Nou. Messi's double owed much to a pair of superb assists, with a supreme dribble

Barcelona Delete Tweet About Lionel Messi’s Tribute To Diego…

Barcelona were forced to delete a tweet about Lionel Messi's tribute to Diego Maradona, after lots of backlash on Tuesday morning. Messi scored Barca's fourth goal in their 4-0 win against Osasuna on Sunday afternoon, just days after the sad passing of Argentina legend Maradona. The goal itself was a near perfect tribute to the 1986 World Cup winner but Messi went one step further to pay respects to the man who managed him for the national team. Messi removed his Barca shirt

The World’s Highest-Paid Soccer Players 2020: Messi Wins, Mbappe…

When it comes to measuring the greatest players in the world’s most beautiful game, the focus inevitably turns to a pair of rivals with household names and exclusive claims to being the only team-sport athletes to earn $1 billion during their careers. It may be time to make room for a third. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo top this year’s Forbes ranking of the highest-paid soccer players once again, after Messi resolved a weeks-long contract drama to land the top spot with $126 million, nudging

Lionel Messi says he is forced to stay with…

Football superstar Lionel Messi will stay at Barcelona for another season, avoiding a lengthy legal battle against the "club of his life." But he also accused the club president of going back on his word. Lionel Messi announced on Friday that he would reluctantly stay with Barcelona until the end of the 2020-21 season rather than face a bitter court battle with the club. Messi made the announcement in a video interview to website Goal putting an end to days of speculation over

Lionel Messi: Maestro’s next move a mystery

Big Manchester clubs will have to make a lot of adjustments if they want Messi on their books. Ever since Lionel Messi has asked to leave Barcelona, speculation in both mainstream and social media has intensified about his next destination. Messi is contemporary football’s biggest star and very few clubs can afford him. Manchester City are said to be at the front of the queue not only because they are flush with money from Abu Dhabi, but also because of Messi’s close proximity

Manchester City ready to offer 100m euros, three players…

The speculations regarding Barcelona star striker Lionel Messi's probable move to Manchester City shows no sign of ending as the the Pep Guardiola's side are reportedly now willing to offer 100 million euros and three players to rope in the Argentinian. According to a report in SPORT, Manchester City are ready to offer midfielder Bernardo Silva, defender Eric Garcia and forward Gabriel Jesus besides signing fee in order to grab Messi. In fact, all these three players have also been linked to a