Lionel Messi was booed by PSG fans once again.
Once the Argentina captain's name was announced in the starting lineup ahead of the team's encounter Lyon on Sunday, it was met with whistles and jeers.
PSG would go on to lose 1-0 to Lyon — suffering their second home defeat in a row in the process having previously not lost at the Parc des Princes for two years.
Messi was notably also booed by PSG fans during their 2-0 home defeat to Rennes last month. And as far as PSG manager Christophe Galtier is concerned, he cannot understand why Messi is receiving such treatment.
“Leo Messi tried very hard,” Galtier said after Sunday's game (via ESPN). “It is not just about Messi and Kylian Mbappe. There were some technical mistakes in his [Messi's] link-up play, but I think the whistles are hard to listen to because Leo Messi gives so much.
“He has got goals and assists in 2023, but it is also down to his teammates in terms of doing more to create more danger in the opposition penalty box.”
Many believe Messi has checked out as a result of winning the World Cup and along with rumors of a return to Barcelona and PSG's poor showing in their 3-0 aggregate defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League, the Argentine is not in the best place with the club's fans.
But would Galtier consider dropping Messi from the starting lineup?
“When it is a difficult period and you need to turn a situation around and score goals, Leo Messi is a decisive player who is capable of coming up with a moment of magic that can be decisive for scoring goals,” he responded. “He has scored goals in 2023, he has got assists. I have never thought about taking him off or not playing him. He is an important player in our attacking line-up.”
Messi has scored 18 goals and provided 17 assists in 33 games in all competitions for PSG this season. The Ligue 1 champions still hold a six-point lead at the top of the table and should still win the league again barring a major collapse.
However, it's the Champions League that everyone associated with the club wants to win and with yet another failure, this could be Messi's last season with the French side as his contract expires in the summer.
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