An ex-Paris Saint-Germain player has launched an angry verbal attack on Lionel Messi after he took a trip to Saudi Arabia this week without permission from the club.
Check Out: Transfer Update: Messi
Despite the Argentine's impressive record of 65 goal contributions in 71 matches, former France and PSG midfielder Jerome Rothen has been a consistent critic of Messi since his free-agent switch to France from Barcelona in 2021.
Rothen, who has long accused the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner of a lack of effort in Paris, believes the ex-Blaugrana captain's time at the club has been a "total fiasco".
"Frankly, it's once again chilling to hear these things," the former PSG winger told RMC Sport.
"It bothers me all the more because you know what I think of Leo Messi's years at PSG, of his coming, why he came, why he wants to extend. It's just a financial question anyway. It was the only club capable of giving him what he wanted.
"The only. I say the only one. He would like to come back to Barcelona but he can't, so he's blocked and he's going out of his way to try to extend, to try to scratch the Qataris even more.
"Since he's already scratched them well for good preparation for the World Cup and he got what he wanted. But now, ciao! Bye bye! That's enough. And I'm going to tell you, this business there, which comes a few days before a crucial match for PSG in Troyes because they could lose the title and a lot of things. They have already lost their Parisian but also French supporters and football enthusiasts, that's the truth.
"Lionel Messi, I don't question his fantastic career or his talent, but his coming to PSG is a total fiasco. And to see that he doesn't even have the professional conscience to say to himself 'in terms of images, it may be inappropriate for me to go there because I was more than useless against Lorient and we were considered to be losers throughout the match…' When the team is in agony, he is even more in agony. It's not possible when we're talking about the best player in the world."
Check Out: Messi 'Suspended' By PSG After Trip To Saudi
Messi has reportedly been suspended for two weeks by PSG, leaving it likely he has only three games left at the club before his contract expires in June.
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