Lionel Messi reacts as PSG players give him guard of honour for 2022 FIFA World Cup win
Lionel Messi has reacted on Instagram to receiving a guard of honor from Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) staff following his return after triumphing at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
The World Cup Golden Ball winner returned to the club on Wednesday, January 4, following an extended break. He was given a warm welcome by his teammates and a few of the club's staff.
Interestingly, Kylian Mbappe was absent when Lionel Messi returned, though Neymar Jr. was one of the first players to congratulate his former Barcelona teammate.
The Argentine superstar was flanked by his teammates as he walked onto the training ground for the first time in 2023. He was also awarded a gold trophy with a star and his name on it by Luis Campos, the PSG sporting director, to commemorate his FIFA World Cup victory.
Lionel Messi shared a few pictures from his day at the training ground on Instagram. In the caption of the post, he expressed his gratitude for the warm welcome and said that he looked forward to resuming his club campaign with PSG.
The caption, which was in Spanish, translates as below:
"Many thanks to my colleagues and all the people of the club for the welcome they gave me. We're back and looking forward to continuing to meet the goals of this season, now with the @psg."
In the post, he also shared a couple of snaps of himself training individually. La Pulga provided an update on when he will be able to return to the lineup as well, as per one of PSG's brief press releases. He said:
"I'm going to prepare myself physically, train well, get back into the swing of things so that I'm ready when the staff decide that I can play."
Lionel Messi is back in training but might not start in PSG's French Cup round-of-16 tie against Chateauroux
Lionel Messi was given a break of roughly two weeks by the club following his FIFA World Cup triumph. He returned to training on Wednesday for the first time since the World Cup final against Kylian Mbappe's France on December 18.
Messi has been in good form this term with 12 goals and 14 assists for the Ligue 1 giants in all competitions.
🎙 Leo Messi: "I want to thank everyone for the welcome I received, from all the employees, my teammates and the staff. I'm happy, and I'm going to get ready for the upcoming challenges." ❤️💙
The Parisians suffered their first defeat in Ligue 1 on Sunday (January 1) against second-placed RC Lens in the absence of Lionel Messi. They will be looking to bounce back in their upcoming home game against Angers, in which the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner is expected to get some minutes.
Prior to that, PSG will compete in a French Cup fixture against Chateauroux in midweek. As Messi has just returned to training after a two-week hiatus, he might not be included in the starting XI for the game. It remains to be seen if he will be fit enough to make the bench.