Lionel Messi will have some bad memories flooding back this weekend as he faces an awkward reunion.
Inter Miami are set to come up against Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup last 16 this Sunday.
Messi has been leading the MLS side in the newly formatted tournament, scoring a stunning free-kick in a historic win over Porto last week.
Miami haven’t lost a single game so far and finished second in Group B, securing their place in the knockout stages.
But the Round of 16 throws up their biggest challenge by a long way.
They will be taking on reigning European champions PSG – a club that Messi knows all about.
The Argentine legend spent two years at the French giants following his emotional departure from Barcelona in 2021.
It was all set up for Messi’s new venture to be a success, linking up with Kylian Mbappe and Neymar and making a super team.
However, the switch turned out to be a major failure.
Despite some impressive numbers from the now 38-year-old, he and his superstar teammates struggled to gel.
He scored 32 goals and provided 35 assists in just 75 appearances, winning Ligue 1 in both of his seasons at PSG.
But in Messi’s last campaign at the club in 2023, things turned very sour, as they only just scraped the league title by one point, despite having the best forward trio in world football.
Messi’s time at PSG ended nastilyAFP He failed to reach the heights expected with his superstar teammatesGettyPSG also failed to win the Champions League with Messi at the club, something that was almost expected with the talent in their line-up.
Poor performances and results led to huge backlash from the French fans, with their biggest names taking the brunt of it.
Supporters gathered outside the PSG headquarters to vent their frustrations, while also protesting outside Neymar’s house.
And Messi, who was a hero and legend at Barcelona, felt for the first time what it was like to become an enemy at PSG.
Fans and French media took aim at the World Cup winner after he was suspended for two weeks for taking an unsanctioned trip to Saudi Arabia in May 2023.
He departed France for the Middle East just hours after a Ligue 1 defeat on a Sunday night, despite being denied permission to go.
The icon was suspended by the club for his unsanctioned tripGettyMessi was expected to be training the following Monday with his teammates, but he ended up being absent.
And due to making the trip to Saudi Arabia, PSG decided to suspend him from training and playing for a fortnight.
He went on to miss two matches in the season run-in, as his side looked to wrap up the Ligue 1 title.
Messi ended up posting a public apology on social media following backlash, revealing he believed that the squad had a day off.
He said in a video on Instagram: “I am sorry for what I did and I wait to see what the club decides.
“I honestly thought we were going to have the day off after the match as had happened in the previous weeks.
Messi was forced to apologise for his actionsGetty“I had organised this trip to Saudi Arabia having cancelled it previously. This time I couldn’t cancel it.”
After this incident, Messi’s PSG career was all but over, with his exit at the end of his contract confirmed soon after.
Fans had already turned on him at Parc Des Princes, booing his name from the stands and criticising his commitment.
But his decision to take a trip to Saudi Arabia made things a lot worse, with more boos coming in his final appearance.
He was jeered during his last game and also during PSG’s trophy presentation when his name was read out.
Messi would then go on to leave and join Inter Miami in the MLS, before opening up about his true feelings about playing for PSG.
Messi spoke about his time at PSG after joining Inter MiamiAFPSpeaking in an interview with Apple Music, 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.”
“People started to treat me differently, a part of the Paris supporters,” he also said, speaking to beIN Sports.
“I think the vast majority still see me and treat me as they did at the beginning, but there was a fracture with a significant group of the Paris fans, which obviously wasn’t my intention, far from it.
“It happened just as it had happened before with Mbappe, with Neymar. I know that’s the way they behave.
“I’ll take away with me the people who respected me, as I always respected everyone since I arrived and that’s all.”
Messi will now reunite with the PSG fanbase that booed him and made their feelings known two years ago.
If there are any in attendance this weekend, he may well hear some more jeers from the stands in the USA.
And Inter Miami manager Javier Mascherano is hoping that his superstar ‘plays angry’ against his old club in the last 16 tie.
Mascherano told SportsCenter: “It’s clear that for us it’s better if he plays angry, because he’s one of those players who, when he has something on his mind, gives an extra effort.
“But I think that’s already in the past; it’s a different story now.”
Inter Miami will be aiming to pull off a major shock, similar to Botafogo, who beat the European champions in the group stage.
They face PSG on Sunday, with kick-off set for 5pm UK time.
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