‘Messi will have to carry that team again’, ‘This could be a chore to see’ – PSG fans unsure of whether the 25-year-old star will line up in place of Neymar in the Ajaccio clash
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) fans trust Lionel Messi will have to carry the team against Ajaccio when Carlos Soler takes over Neymar jr. in the starting lineup. The Parisians face the newly promoted team today (October 21).
Neymar has been in spectacular form so far this season, scoring 12 goals and providing nine assists in 16 games in all competitions so far. However, the nimble Brazilian was absent from the match against Ajaccio because of a suspension.
Coach Christophe Galtier has decided to choose the newly signed Soler as the No 10 to operate behind strikers Messi and Kylian Mbappe.
The 25-year-old joined Valencia at the start of the season and has since scored once in nine games for the Parisians.
That said, fans aren’t sure how he’ll perform out of zero. 10 positions. While they are happy to see Renato Sanches start in midfield, there are doubts about Soler’s position.
Here’s how PSG fans reacted after Galtier announced their squad for the clash with Ajaccio:
🔴🔵 PSG XI vs Ajaccio Donnarumma – Hakimi, Marquinhos, Mukiele, Bernat – Sanches, Fabian Ruiz, Verratti – Soler – Messi, Mbappé.
Soler like an interesting 10 twitter.com/PSGhub/status/…
Soler in 10 let’s see twitter.com/PSGhub/status/…
The Paris team is currently at the top of the Ligue 1 table with 29 points after 11 matches in the league. Ajaccio, meanwhile, is languishing in 18th place, after picking up eight points from 11 games.
PSG coach Christophe Galtier analyzed the team’s recent difficulties in attack without Lionel Messi
PSG only won 1 of the last 4 matches in all competitions and struggled in attack, scoring only 3 goals in those matches. Messi only played in those four games as he was sidelined with injury.
When asked how he would analyze the team’s recent struggles, the French manager spoke to the media ahead of the clash with Ajaccio (via PSG Talk):
“I think we weren’t very predictable to OM. Honestly, even if OM had a good game, we deserved to have scored more goals. We had a lot of situations, a little bit. Unlucky in Leo’s fix, the keeper was called in and made a lot of crucial saves.”
He added:
“But at Lyon we had a lot of situations and the Lyon goalkeeper was also credited with a great performance. Of course, it would be more comfortable to have more consistent space to have more important rotations in games.”
Messi has scored eight goals and eight assists in 14 matches in all competitions this season.
