“He carries the ball less than at Barca” – Former PSG manager Vahid Halilhodzic identifies what has changed with ‘smarter’ Lionel Messi under Galtier 

Former Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) coach Vahid Halilhodzic has shed light on Lionel Messi’s positioning under Christophe Galtier, revealing that he now finds the Argentine “smarter.”

Lionel Messi struggled to hit the ground running under Mauricio Pochettino in his debut season in the French capital. The former Barcelona man scored only 11 goals in 34 games across competitions in the 2021-22 season, with only six of those coming in Ligue 1 (26 appearances).

Lionel Messi has looked a lot more comfortable under new boss Galtier this season, and Halilhodzic feels it is down to his new positioning. Speaking to French publication L’Equipe (via PSGTalk), he sang praises of Galtier’s tactics, saying:

“Neymar plays higher and asks for balls in the depth that Messi gives him. The Argentinian makes a recital in number 10, in the simple game and in the intervals.”

“I also find him smarter. He carries the ball less than at Barça. Messi is a school of football. In this position, he is more in this thinking to help Neymar and Mbappé than to score and think about the Ballon d’Or. This is the new thing I saw tonight (yesterday).”

Lionel Messi, 35, has scored four goals in four games for PSG this season, with three of those coming in Ligue 1 in as many appearances. He recorded a goal and an assist in his latest Ligue 1 outing, helping the Parisians to an emphatic 7-1 triumph over Lille on Sunday night (August 21).

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Halilhodzic backs PSG to finally win the Champions League this season

Despite having the trident of Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Kylian Mbappe at their disposal, PSG failed to go deep into the Champions League last season. They were knocked out in the round-of-16 by Real Madrid, succumbing to a 3-2 aggregate defeat.

Paris Saint-Germain are eager to win their first Champions League title this season, and Halilhodzic has backed them to do so, claiming that they have the best squad in Europe.

The former Paris coach added:

“The squad is by far the best in the world,” Halilhodžić said. “Afterward, it is also a question of social relations between the players. They must be brought together in a common project so that everyone puts their ego aside and remains at this level and in this collective spirit.

“If so, I don’t see a team capable of preventing him from realizing his dream. A lot can happen between now and April-May. But he is off to a great season.”