Paris St Germain (PSG) presented Lionel Messi to fans inside the Parc des Princes stadium ahead of their Ligue 1 clash with Strasbourg, but the Argentine was not included in the squad for the 4-2 victory that saw them take a maximum six points from the opening two matches of the 2021-22 Ligue 1 campaign.
Messi took to the field pre-match along with fellow new recruits Sergio Ramos, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Achraf Hakimi, and Georginio Wijnaldum, and spoke to the raucous crowd.
"It has been a very special week for me," he said. "I want to thank everyone for the reception since I arrived in Paris. It has been truly incredible. I feel very happy and excited.
"I hope together we can enjoy this year and make it a great year for us. I am very excited about everything."
As expected, Messi was not named in the match squad after coach Mauricio Pochettino said this week that the 34-year-old is not yet fully fit.
Italy goalkeeper Donnarumma, fresh off a Euro 2020 triumph and formerly of AC Milan, and veteran defender Ramos, who is a Real Madrid legend, were also not included. Hakimi, purchased from Inter Milan, and Wijnaldum, from Liverpool, were selected to start.
Messi joined PSG this week on a two-year contract with the option of extending it by another year after Barcelona said they could not afford to keep him because of LaLiga's financial fair play rules.
2021-22 Ligue 1 season odds
PSG: +500
Lille: +900
Lyon: +900
Monaco: +1200
Marseille: +1600
Montpellier: +3300
Rennes: +4000
Lens: +5000
Nice: +10000
Bordeaux: +50000
Clermont: +50000
Metz: +50000
Nantes: +50000
St Etienne: +50000
Troyes: +50000
Angers: +75000
Brest: +100000
Lorient: +100000
Reims: +100000
Strasbourg: +100000
Odds courtesy of William Hill
