Following the Ligue 1 leaders’ defeat to Lorient on Sunday, in which Messi played the final 90 minutes, the 35-year-old travelled to Saudi, where he is a tourism ambassador, despite not receiving permission from the club.
PSG have suspended Messi for two weeks, meaning he will not train or play during that period, and it is now accepted that the World Cup winner will leave the club at the end of the season.
Whether he plays again for PSG remains to be seen, but Messi is out of contract in the summer and already appeared unlikely to sign a new deal. There is talk of a potential return to Barcelona, while it has also been suggested Al Hilal will make him a £320million-a-year offer, and Crystal Palace’s Michael Olise is among those being considered as a replacement.
Messi has now broken his silence on his suspension, claiming that he was unable to postpone the trip on short notice after it became apparent PSG players were expected to train following the Lorient loss.
“I thought we were going to have a day off after the game as always,” Messi said in a video posted on Instagram.
“I had this trip organised and couldn’t cancel it. I had already cancelled it before. I apologise to my team-mates and I’m waiting for what the club wants to do with me.”
