Lionel Messi has been frustrated by not being in the form he expected since joining Paris Saint-Germain so far. However, OGC Nice manager Christophe Galtier believes the former Barcelona forwars should take time to adapt to the Ligue 1 campaign.
“Messi has spent 99% of his career with a club. He came to FC Barcelona at the age of 13. It took him some time to adapt to the club, the partners, the game model, to his life as a player.” Galtier said.
“It’s normal in football. Maybe it’s difficult against Saint-Etienne. The conditions are not easy for him.” Galtier added.
Galtier also spoke about how delighted he was to see Messi in action on Wednesday. However, he also said that he did not want the Argentine superstar to come back against Nice.
“On set pieces, he drops the ball where they need it. It would be nice to see him. We are honored in France to have this player in our championship.” Galtier said.
“I love watching Messi play. But I hope we won’t see him too much on Wednesday night. I dare to hope that my players won’t see him play.” he added.
The match against Nice will be Lionel Messi’s first match since being awarded the Ballon d’Or. The Argentinian beat Robert Lewandowski and Jorginho to win his record seventh Ballon d’Or. Messi will certainly want to deliver a strong performance for PSG after his historic win.
Messi assisted in all three of PSG’s goals in a 3-1 win over Saint Etienne. However, apart from a few glimpses, he is already a shadow of himself, as he was at Barcelona.
PSG are leading the Ligue 1 table with 40 points after 15 matches, far ahead of the chasing group when they are 12 points ahead of second place Rennes, 13 points more than Nice and Marseilla and 15 points more than Lens.
