The renowned London-based businessman Arif Efendi is also a huge football enthusiast. Lionel Messi is one of his favoriteplayers, and he has followed his professional career closely for years.
Arif Efendi spoke to our reporter about Messi’s situation at his new team, PSG. He predicts a big sophomore burst of form this season from Lionel Messi at PSG. After the first season in Paris fell flat for the Little Genius, Messi’s time in France is far from done, Efendi claims. Early signs in the 2022/23 season suggest that Messi could be back to his best.
Never Count Out Lionel Messi, warns ArifEfendi
Lionel Messi moved to PSG in the summer of 2021. With time called on his Barcelona playing days, he skipped across the continent for a new challenge. But it was not a smooth transition.
In his first season with the club, Messi tallied only six goals in 26 Ligue 1 appearances. That was his lowest output in front of goal since the 2005/06 La Liga season with Barcelona. For context, Lionel Messi broke the thirty-goal mark in four of his five final seasons with the Blaugrana.
Considering that Messi had his desire to leave Barca in 2020 blocked by Barca, he could have phoned it in during his final season. But the consummate professional played for the love of his club still and the Argentine scored 30 goals in 35 league games.
However, Messi ended the season with only a Copa del Rey title being added to his long list of honors. Messi cried his emotional way out of Camp Nou in August 2021. He left behind a Barcelona that was in a financial mess. A club that had allowed its star asset to walk away on a free transfer.
Somehow Messi still won the 2021 Ballon d’Or. Everyone had been expecting it to go to Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski. Messi’s performances on the pitch during his debut season for PSG weren’t spectacular at all. From having been the main man at Camp Nou, he was suddenly looking anonymous alongside Neymar and Kylian Mbappé. Messi later admitted that he had had a bad time and had struggled in his debut season at PSG.
His first goal for PSG didn’t come until the end of September. It was a spectacular goal from outside the box as PSG beat Man Utd in the UEFA Champions League. Fans expected the floodgates to open. But they didn’t. Messi wouldn’t open his account in Ligue 1 until November. However, with the turmoil of his Barcelona exit now well behind him and a full season under his belt at his new club, things appear to be back on the up.
Lionel Messi looks to have a fresh spring in his step early into the 2022/23 season. In mid-October, he ranked inside the top 3 for most goals and assists in Europe in 22-23. Five goals in his first ten league games of the season saw him sparkling again. Messi is adapting, settling into more of a playmaking role this term. He’s feeding Neymar and Kylian Mbappé. The pressure of goals is off and looks to once again be enjoying his football.
Lionel Messi won’t be rejoining Barcelona soon
Lionel Messi’s contract at PSG runs until the summer of 2023. The 35-year-old has an option for a further one-year extension. He won’t respond to Barcelona return rumors until after the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
There’s no need for it to happen before that. But how likely is a return to Barcelona for Messi? In the opinion of Arif Efendi, not high at all. Messi was the king of the castle at the NouCamp. He’d played his entire professional career there until the move to PSG.
He has nothing to prove with the Catalans. Plus, returns to former clubs don’t always work out. Romelu Lukaku, for example, was expected to be Chelsea’s big savior when he returned in 2021 from Inter. The transfer went south quickly,and Lukaku was loaned back to the Serie A side.
Cristiano Ronaldo went back to his old stomping ground of Old Trafford in 2020. He outshone his teammates in front of the goal, but that wasn’t too hard to accomplish. CR7 had returned to a poor, directionless Manchester United side. He cut a frustrated figure at times, playing for himself and not his team. Things are now even worse this term with Ronaldo struggling for playing time and desperate to move away.
As things stand as well, Lionel Messi is likely to have a better chance at more silverware with PSG than back at Barcelona. The Catalans have financial issues. They failed to make the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League last term and are struggling on that front again. PSG, meanwhile, isamong the front-runners for the title.
A return to Barcelona doesn’t seem to fit Leo’s future. There may well be an emotional calling for him to return. But he left a legend. There is nothing that he could do on a potential return to enhance that status at this stage of his career. Lionel Messi doesn’t need to cement his legacy at Camp Nou. In fact, he may struggle to live up to it and likely wouldn’t be able to save Barcelona from mediocrity.
Lionel Messi said his goodbyes at Camp Nou. He probably won’t want to go through that again. A stay in Paris appears a lot more viable for his future.
Arif Efendi highlights Messi’s role as a peacemaker at PSG
Being one of the richest clubs in the world, the PSG squad is stacked with superstars. It would appear that it also has its fair share of egos. At the center of a lot of the turmoil surrounding the Ligue 1 club is Kylian Mbappé.
The French superstar was all set to leave PSG for Real Madrid in 2022 until a dramatic late turnaround. PSG reportedly offered Mbappé everything that he wanted to stay, including the power to call some shots behind the scenes.
Rumors are that Mbappé had wanted Neymar out of the club for a while. Long before the promises that PSG allegedly gave Mbappé to get him to stick with them. Then in the 2022 summer transfer window, PSG looked as if they were considering selling the Brazilian. Neymar blamed Mbappé for trying to force him out of the club.
The experienced head of the PSG power trio is Messi. With unrest bubbling under the surface at PSG, he stepped in as a peacemaker to try and smooth things over. Messi has a personal relationship with Neymar, having spent many seasons together at Barcelona.
All individuals have their agendas. Messi’s desire to win more silverware at the top level could have prompted his mediation. Staying at PSG, he will have a bigger, better chance of claiming a record-extending eighth Ballon d’Or.
Messi, Neymar, and Kylian Mbappé are also going to be three of the biggest stars at this year’s World Cup. Mbappé will star for reigning champions France. Neymar’s Brazil is the tournament’s favorite. Messi’s Argentina is on a massive unbeaten streak of form and is pegged as a serious contender.
Lionel Messi will want to be in the right frame of mind for possibly his final World Cup. The biggest title of his career is still within sight.
