Paris Saint-Germain's boss has explained his stance on Lionel Messi after being asked if he will drop the underperforming Argentine following his team's latest shock loss in Ligue 1.
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Fans at the Parc des Princes appear to be intent on piling pressure on the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner, whose future at the club remains unclear amid apparent interest from Barcelona, as they aimed more jeers at him as PSG suffered a 1-0 defeat to Olympique Lyon on Sunday night.
The French giants have now suffered two consecutive losses at home much to the frustration of supporters, who appear to have singled out Messi's form since the team were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League.
Speaking after the game, head coach Christophe Galtier suggested he does not see dropping the 35-year-old as a solution to the problem.
"I do not share your opinion, but I let you ask your question," he said, according to GetFrenchFootballNews.
"When you're in a difficult period, Leo is a decisive player capable of delivering the right ball or scoring with a stroke of genius. In 2023? He scored and was decisive as well.
"I never thought of depriving myself of him. Perhaps the offensive animation should be reviewed in order to bring more presence into the opposing area."
Galtier also said he finds it difficult listening to the jeers aimed at Messi and believes those around him need to step up.
"I find them hard. We are waiting for Leo and Kylian (Mbappe) to unblock the situation. Leo is our facilitator, so he tries a lot so automatically has a lot of waste," he added.
"But around Leo, you need to overstep the function of the players. We can't expect everything from Leo and Kylian. Leo tried and succeeded in some things, mismatches or otherwise. But he also missed technical relationships with his partners.
"There was still a lot of density. These whistles are hard in my opinion because he gave a lot in the first part of the season. He was a passer and scorer in 2023. It is also up to others to do more to bring more danger."
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