FSoccer world champion Lionel Messi has publicly apologized after his suspension from Paris Saint-Germain. “After everything that happened, I wanted to make this video. First of all, I apologize to my teammates and to the club,” said the 35-year-old Argentinian in a clip published on Instagram on Friday: “I really thought we would have a day off after the game, like we’ve had in the past few weeks was the case.”
The superstar had previously been suspended for two weeks after an allegedly unarranged trip to Saudi Arabia. Now he spoke for the first time.
“I organized this trip that I had already canceled before and now I couldn’t cancel it again,” said Messi in the short video, in which he can be seen in a dark suit in front of a white wall: “I’m sorry for what I did and await the club’s decision.”
Virtually no one expects Messi to stay in Paris after this season, his contract expires on June 30. He had moved from FC Barcelona to Paris two years ago, after more than 20 years with the Catalans, the heavily indebted club could no longer afford the offensive artist.
PSG coach Christophe Galtier declined to comment on the suspension on Friday. He was informed about the measure by the club management at the beginning of the week, it was not his decision.
Messi will be absent from PSG’s game at Estac Troyes this Sunday, having been unable to play or train for two weeks after a short family trip to Saudi Arabia as a tourism ambassador. He doesn’t get paid during this time either. The question at the moment is also whether Messi will ever return to PSG for the remaining games. He was last used in the 3-1 home defeat by FC Lorient last Sunday.