Lionel Messi leaves PSG, joins rival Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia

Superstar football player Lionel Messi has ended his two-year journey with French club Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and is all set to join Saudi Arabia where his long-standing rival Christiano Ronaldo plays, months after he led Argentina to win the FIFA world cup of 2022, reported AFP.

After the Qatar 2022 world cup, Messi’s admirers and fans ended the debate with a substantial declaration that he is the greatest football player in history or the greatest of all times (GOAT).

On the contrary, Lionel Messi’s football career witnessed an abrupt end in Europe as he was suspended by PSG last week for his unauthorised trip to Saudi Arabia.

He scored 31 goals in 71 appearances for the French champions and is expected to secure a second consecutive Ligue 1 title later this month, however, he has failed in his mission to take PSG to a first Champions League win, facing back-to-back last-16 defeats.

Barcelona had been eyeing to take the 35-year-old back to Camp Nou, where he won 10 La Liga titles and four Champions League titles before an emotional departure in 2021.

Though Saudi Arabia is alleged of diverting attention from its human rights record using sports, Riyadh will be able to boast of having arguably the two best football players of the modern era in their unheralded domestic league.

Ronaldo is playing for Al Nassr, while a source close to the negotiations who told AFP that Messi’s move to Saudi Arabia was a “done deal”, stopped short of saying which club the Argentine will join.