Lionel Messi and the moment of return: the undisputed king of world football awaits a busy schedule of matches

It’s time to go back. That’s all. You have to work, no matter how tempting it is to throw yourself under the shade of a tree and endlessly watch Instagram reels or Tik Tok stories to enjoy again and again what happened in the last two months of 2022 in and around Doha. The evil of Qatar, also known as the evil of the world champion -and it is not the camel flu-, left its sequels. It becomes difficult to get out of the HD football overdose and go through its consequent withdrawal syndrome after living between November and December a fairy tale that had the best possible happy ending.

But you have to let go. And that’s what the over 47 million Argentines have done since December 18, 2022, the day they got a tattoo, when Lionel Messi lifted the World Cup, the real one and the fake one, on the playing field of Lusail Stadium. And this is what the captain of the Argentine national team is also doing, who this Wednesday, 24 days before the unforgettable final against France, will return to play in a semester in which he will have a lot at stake with Paris Saint-Germain. He also has to go back to work. It will be his first function of 2023.

The first match will be this Wednesday, from 17:00, against Angers (television Star+). It will be the clash between the leaders and bottom of Ligue 1. It will be at the Parque de los Príncipes, Messi’s home since August 2021, when he was forced to leave Barcelona. The only question at this moment is how he will be received by the fans of the all-powerful Parisian club.. What will weigh more? The devotion and privilege of having the king of football or the anger at having left France without the double world cup? We will know a little earlier, when he takes the field to warm up with the rest of his teammates.

According to French media, there would be no recognition for the 35-year-old from Rosario, like when he returned to training for the team last week, with Mbappé on vacation in the United States.

From then on and until the end of June of this 2023, at least 24 games await him. Counting only the commitments that he has secured with Paris Saint Germain, with which he has already found an agreement in principle to continue beyond June. There are 21 for Ligue 1, which ends on the weekend of 3/6 against Clermont, the two for the round of 16 of the Champions League -they will be on 14/2 and 8/3 against Bayern Munich- and the following instance of the French Cup -it would be Saturday February 21st-.

To these two dozen games we must obviously add the friendly against a selection of players from the two main Saudi Arabian teams: Al Hilal, led by Ramon Diazand the Al Nasr, a brand new destination for Cristiano Ronaldo, who will be directed by Marcelo Gallardo. It is scheduled for January 19 in Riyadh, two days after an open training session at the Khalifa stadium in Doha and four days after the match against Rennes, in Ligue 1.

But the agenda does not end there. It is that, as we know, PSG’s great goal is the Champions League. If they overcome mighty Bayern, they will be ahead of the -guaranteed- quarter-finals, and hypothetical semi-finals and final, which will be held at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey on 10 June. The same goes for the French Cup, where the team led by Christopher Galtier he settles in the round of 16 after last Friday’s victory against the humble Châteaurouxfrom the third division of football second in the world.

Consequently, doing all the math, there will be at least 35 commitments ahead of Messi with PSG. An agenda uploaded between now and June that could also have four other brands. Is that Messi has already warned that he wanted to enjoy a few more games with world champion Argentina. And the national team, in this first half of 2023, has two FIFA windows in front of it. The first will be in March and the AFA’s idea is to play two matches in Buenos Aires on the 21st and 28th of the third month of the year. Where will it be played? Who will be the rivals? These are two unknowns that do not yet have a solution. It is also unknown what the scenario will be. A huge problem also because everyone wants to see Messi and company up close after the Middle Eastern enterprise. It will take two or three Monumentals together to meet that demand.

Furthermore, Lionel Scaloni’s selection – another one who needs to renew his contract – will have the opportunity to take advantage of another FIFA window, scheduled for the period from 12 to 20 June. We don’t know if Messi will be there. It is also unknown whether the AFA will throw parties.

Messi’s season

In this atypical season, crossed by the World Cup in Qatar, Messi played 19 games for PSG. There are 13 for Ligue 1, with 7 goals and three assists, five for the Champions League (4 and 4) and one for the Champions Trophy, with one goal. In total, he added 1,657 minutes of action at the Paris club.

In addition, Leo played ten games for the national team. It was the seven passes that led Scaloneta to the consecration in Qatar 2022, with seven goals and three assists. And three friendlies (Honduras, Jamaica and the United Arab Emirates) in which he added 5 shouts and a pass on goal. Productive wherever you look at it.

Messi’s future

And the future? For now, Rosario has a contract until June 30, 2023. However, he will certainly extend his stay in Paris. In fact, three days after the final won against France, it emerged that there was a general agreement for its continuity after a meeting between the president of the club in the Qatari capital, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, and Jorge Messi, father and representative by Leo, during the World Cup.

The duration would be one year with the possibility of an extension for another year and all that remains is to seal its continuity in Paris, where both the footballer and his family made up of his wife Antonela Roccuzzo and sons Thiago, Mateo and Ciro are already present. fully adapted.