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Lionel Messi is expected to start for Paris Saint-Germain when they travel to face Clermont Foot on Saturday, August 6, to open their Ligue 1 title defence.
PSG are coming off a convincing 4-0 win over Nantes in the Trophee des Champions on Sunday, July 31, in Tel Aviv. Messi, 35, opened the scoring for Christophe Galtier's side in that game, with Neymar scoring a brace and Sergio Ramos also getting on the scoresheet.
The defending champions will want to carry their good form into their first league game of the season. Messi is likely be a part of the Parisians' attack and should be joined by Neymar in attack. However, the same cannot be said about Kylian Mbappe, who is not in the squad due to an adductor injury.
Galtier could start Pablo Sarabia in attack alongside Messi and Neymar like he did against Nantes in the Trophee des Champions.
Messi had one of his best performances in a PSG shirt against Clermont Foot last season, providing a hat-trick of assists in the 6-1 win. Neymar and Mbappe scored hat-tricks in that game.
Messi will look for a much better Ligue 1 campaign this time around. The Argentina captain only managed six league goals last time but did provide 14 assists.
Lionel Messi has entered the final year of his PSG contract
Lionel Messi joined Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer last summe, penning a two-year contract. That means the former Barcelona superstar has entered the final year of his contract.
According to recent reports, the Parisian giants are keen to offer Messi a new one-year deal that would keep him at the club till the end of the 2023-24 season.
However, there have been other parties interested in signing Lionel Messi once his PSG contract ends. Barcelona president Joan Laporta has said that he would love to bring Messi back to the Camp Nou next summer (via Goal).
