Lionel Messi says he 'wasn't happy on a daily basis' at PSG, relishing World Cup in US for Inter Miami and Argentina
By Leon Imber
Published 28/02/2025 at 18:21 GMT
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Eight-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi said he "wasn't happy on a daily basis" during his two-year stint with Paris Saint-Germain. Messi, who featured in a star-studded attacking line-up alongside Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, said he had a "hard time adapting" to life at the Ligue 1 club, and jumped at the "opportunity" to join Inter Miami in the MLS.
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Lionel Messi has said he "didn't enjoy" his two-year spell with Paris Saint-Germain, and "wasn't happy on a daily basis" at the Ligue 1 club.
The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner helped PSG to two league titles, though despite lining up alongside fellow elite forwards Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, could not guide the club to European glory.
Messi joined PSG in 2021, and left for Inter Miami in 2023, notching 32 goals in 75 appearances with the French side - a return which compares unfavourably against the impressive 672 goals in 778 matches he achieved with previous club Barcelona.
And speaking in an interview with Apple Music's Zane Lowe, Messi said he "had a hard time adapting" to life at the Parc des Princes.
He said: "Coming to play for Inter Miami was an opportunity and the way things developed during my last years in Paris, although it was a decision that I had to make on the go, because I had to leave from Barcelona, I went through two years which I didn't enjoy.
"I wasn't happy on a daily basis, with the training, the matches. I had a hard time adapting to all that. I felt called to come to Inter [Miami] because it's a club that's growing, very new, with few years as a club."
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Messi's move to the MLS sent shockwaves around the American game, and the Argentina forward has lived up to his billing as one of world's football's greatest players, scoring 36 goals and assisting 20 in his 42 matches so far.
Inter Miami - a club founded in 2018 and co-owned by Manchester United and England legend David Beckham - were handed automatic entry to the Club World Cup - kicking off in June.
Should the MLS side advance from their group, they could face the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea and Real Madrid.
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The tournament, held in the United States, comes a year before the FIFA World Cup, held in the US, Mexico and Canada.
In what looks likely to be Messi's final bow in the international competition he finally helped Argentina to win in 2022, the 37-year-old is relishing the chance to compete in two 'World Cup' tournaments at his new base.
"I think this is very important for the club, especially, to participate for the first time in a World Cup that will take place in the country and for the MLS to have two teams is a wonderful thing," Messi said.
"Everything that's happening creates an opportunity for the MLS to keep growing in football, as a league. And for other players to have the opportunity to come and keep growing."
Messi has scored twice in the CONCACAF Champions Cup in as many appearances so far this season, as well as notching two assists in Miami's 2-2 draw with New York City - the opening match of their MLS campaign.
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