Having received a warm welcome upon his return to Paris Saint-Germain following his 2022 FIFA World Cup triumph, Lionel Messi has issued a heartfelt message to the club.
The 35-year-old returned to training for the French giants on Wednesday after being given an extended break following the World Cup in Qatar.
Messi spent the festive period with family in Argentina following the Albiceleste's triumph over France in the final on 18 December, missing two matches for his club side as the season resumed late in December.
PSG's players and staff made sure to welcome the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner back with warm applause as they lined up to give him a guard of honour on their training pitch, as captured by the club's social media team.
????This was the return to training for ?????? ?????????? on video! pic.twitter.com/jtchYF1WDe
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) January 4, 2023
Writing on Instagram, Messi thanked the French giants and said he was ready to get started on the second half of the 2022/23 season.
"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," he said, according to the club's website.
"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."
The former Barcelona captain is expected to continue in Paris beyond the terms of his current contract, which expires in June, with reports suggesting he will sign a new deal in the coming weeks.
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Messi had previously been tipped to take his career to the MLS, but it is said he has communicated to PSG that he is willing to stay on at the club.
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