"A team of mercenaries" - Former Barcelona scout explains why Lionel Messi has struggled at PSG

According to Marca, former Barcelona scout Carles Rexach has labeled Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) a team of mercenaries while speculating why Lionel Messi has struggled thus far.

Lionel Messi has certainly underwhelmed in comparison to the lofty standards he has set for himself over the years. The Argentine has scored seven times and has eight assists for PSG in 22 appearances across all competitions. He has scored five times in the Champions League already but has failed to maintain the same kind of numbers when it comes to Ligue 1.

Kylian Mbappe has been the primary scorer for PSG this term and has 22 goals and 14 assists in 33 appearances for PSG. It is interesting to note that Carles Rexach was responsible for Lionel Messi’s move to Barcelona back in September 2000, at the age of 14.

The former scout believes that the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner has struggled because PSG do not have a team identity:

“Messi is suffering at PSG, it's a team of mercenaries. They don't play beautiful or spectacular football or even as a team, they win because one day up pops Neymar, the next it's Messi, then [Kylian] Mbappe, and they get it done, but they don't have an identity as a team.”

Does Lionel Messi need to leave PSG in order to regain his goalscoring form?

Most football fans will concede that the Argentine has at times looked back to his best with PSG despite not regularly scoring. He has created regular chances for his teammates but has looked out of sorts at times. While PSG, under Mauricio Pochettino, initially struggled to dominate possession game after game, they have improved in recent weeks and looked very organized against Real Madrid.

In Marco Verratti, PSG have a primary midfielder who sets the team’s tempo while their defensive unit is also capable of competing with the best teams in world football. In attack, Pochettino himself had claimed that he was initially finding it difficult to play Neymar, Mbappe and Lionel Messi in the same lineup.

Rather than it being a problem of team identity, Lionel Messi has arguably struggled because he is no longer the primary ball handler in his team. At Barcelona, his teammates regularly sought him out and he was given the license to roam throughout the pitch. At PSG, he has been shunned mostly to the right with Neymar coming in through the middle and Kylian Mbappe playing on the left.

Messi is no longer the primary goalscorer as well, although that might change if Kylian Mbappe moves to Real Madrid in the summer. It is no secret that Messi is a player who is at his best when given total freedom to roam. At PSG, he has been forced to limit his overall game, something which is as much a result of the team's identity as the overlapping qualities that his teammates possess.