One. Last. Chance. Is this Lionel Messi’s last ever opportunity to win the coveted and glorified UEFA Champions League trophy? Will the G.O.A.T finish his European football career on the highest of highs by winning the continent’s biggest competition? Or, will the Argentinian magician be disappointed once again as he fails to win the Champions League for the second consecutive year with PSG?
Paris Saint-Germain’s round of 16 clash against reigning Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich has so far not gone in the way of the Parisian club. The rematch of the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League final saw Paris-born winger Kingsley Coman score the winner. Perfectly caressing the ball into the goal after a marvelous cross from Canadian Alphonso Davies, Coman further diminished PSG’s chances of making their 2nd ever Champions League final.
Worryingly for PSG, the second leg of this fixture will be played away from home, as Bayern host The Parisians at the Allianz Arena tonight. Along with failing to score at home, PSG’s concerns are increased by the fact that they will be without club record signing Neymar in this game. In fact, the Brazilian is set to miss the rest of the season after completing an ankle surgery that will keep him on the sidelines for 3 to 4 months.
A relief for Messi and PSG though, is that 3-time Ligue 1 Player of the Year Kylian Mbappe will be fit to start against the German outlet. The 24 year old was unable to start the first leg, but came on in the 57th minute and even managed to score a goal which was ultimately ruled out by VAR.
After last season’s failure to advance past the Round of 16, PSG will hope to not be knocked out at the exact same stage for the second consecutive season. Messi in particular will be hoping to perform on the night, having failed to register a shot on target in the first leg and is yet to score a UEFA Champions League knockout goal for Paris Saint-Germain.
Messi’s UEFA Champions League Journey So Far
Leo Messi, the 7x Balon d’Or winner, the World Cup winner, the 4x Champions League winner and more. The Argentinian maestro has absolutely nothing left to prove as he has achieved practically everything there is to achieve in world football. However, in order to tie Cristiano Ronaldo’s 5 UEFA Champions League victories, Lionel Messi will be aspiring to win this year’s competition and raise PSG’s first ever continental trophy in Istanbul.
Messi’s UEFA Champions League career has been quite an eventful one. In only his second ever professional season, Lionel Messi won the competition with his maiden club Barcelona in 2006. In this Champions League campaign, Messi scored once and assisted twice as the Blaugrana won the competition for the 2nd time in club history. The Argentinian would go on to win 3 more UEFA Champions League trophies with Barca, defeating Manchester United twice and Juventus once in their next three finals appearances. These finals saw some legendary moments from Lionel Messi, including his leaping header against Manchester United which saw the Catalonian side defeat The Red Devils 2-0 in the final.
Along with the UEFA Champions League trophies, Lionel Messi holds a variety of records in the European competition which illustrate his overall dominance and brilliance. The boy from Rosario is the only player in competition history to score in 18 consecutive seasons, doing so between 2005/06 and the current 2022/23 season. He also holds the record for most goals scored with a single club in the competition, scoring 120 UEFA Champions League goals with his beloved F.C. Barcelona. PSG’s number 30 has also scored the most goals in the Champions League group stage and round of 16 with 80 and 29 goals respectively.
However, the most recent years for Lionel Messi in the Champions League have been largely unsuccessful for both The Parisians and the Blaugrana. After defeating Juventus in the 2014/15 edition of the continental competition, Barca were knocked out in the quarter-finals by fellow Spanish side Atletico Madrid. The next season saw Juventus gain revenge on Messi’s Barcelona, with the La Liga outfit being knocked out of the quarter-finals once again. Perhaps the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League exit was the most humiliating for Lionel Messi and Barca, as Roma came back in the second leg after being 4-1 down to win the tie. However things only got worse for Barcelona, as the following year Liverpool’s legendary 3-0 down comeback knocked the Blaugrana out in the semi-finals. 2 goals for Divock Origi and Gini Wijnladum each saw Barcelona lose 4-0 in the second leg, and be knocked out in embarrassing fashion for the second consecutive season.
Essentially, Messi and Barcelona failed to make a single Champions League final after winning the competition in the 2014/15 season. In the period between 2014/15 and 2020/21, Messi’s boyhood club were knocked out in the quarter finals 4 times, the semi finals once and the round of 16 once. Thus, in hopes of more European success, Messi made the shocking but inevitable move away from Barcelona and joined The Parisians in August of 2021. But once again, Messi was left disappointed as Karim Benzema’s iconic second leg hattrick broke PSG’s heart and sent them home in the round of 16.
What Does the Future Hold for Leo Messi?
In the summer of 2021, Lionel Messi signed a 2 year contract with Paris Saint-Germain. Meaning, that the G.O.A.T’s contract expires after this season with The Parisians. Whilst the future is completely uncertain for the boy from Rosario, his age and inevitable decline in form could mean that this is Messi’s last opportunity to perform at the highest level and win the UEFA Champions League.
Over the past few days, Paris Saint-Germain sporting director Luis Campos has confirmed that the club is in talks with the 35 year old to extend his contract with The Parisians. Whilst it is possible that Messi continues his stint at PSG and is given more opportunities to win his fifth Champions League trophy, the possibility of him crossing the Atlantic is not unlikely.
Throughout 2022, rumors of Lionel Messi’s departure from PSG and arrival to the MLS spread like wildfire. A constant discussion regarding his club future was perpetuated by the news that David Beckham’s Inter Miami were in contract talks with the Argentinian. If Lionel Messi were to make the move to the United States, it would surely put an end to his Champions League aspirations as he would be in his late 30’s if he ever made a move back to European football.
Regardless of where Lionel Messi ends up playing in the 2023/24 season, the football world will be heavily interested in tonight’s second leg fixture between Bayern Munich and PSG. The globe will be intrigued as Lionel Messi potentially plays his last ever UEFA Champions League game. All we know is, that tonight’s clash will be one for the ages as Messi could either ball out and carry PSG to a quarter-final birth or be left disappointed once again in Europe’s most coveted club competition.
