"He did not want to train in the morning" - Jerome Rothen criticizes Lionel Messi's behaviour at PSG

Former Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) winger Jerome Rothen has slammed Lionel Messi's intent and mentality at the club.

Messi's time at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) came to an end as the Argentine played his final game against Clermont Foot last week. He will be joining MLS side Inter Miami as a free agent upon the expiration of his contract with the Parisian club.

Rothen has now accused Messi of not wanting to adapt during his time at the Parisian club, stating that he didn't want to train in the morning.

There was also one instance in which the Argentine left training before the conclusion. Manager Christophe Galtier clarified that the forward had a calf issue.

Rothen, though, said that was not the case, as he said (via RMC Sport):

"We got wind of a lot of things. We mopped up all that because it wasn't the time to talk about it. Remember the day he left training. The club had covered it all up saying it was a small calf injury. It was all wrong, absolutely wrong. The reason? Monsieur was fed up with this that was offered to him in training."

He added:

"It was certainly a day when his children were suffering in my opinion… (ironic) He was not well in his head so he left training. He went back to the locker room , he took a shower, he left. It shows how much he respected his coach and his teammates."

Speaking further about Lionel Messi's unwillingness to adapt at PSG, Rothen said:

"He very often wanted to change the pace of training. He did not want to train in the morning. He told the staff on several occasions that training in the morning is not good. That you have to train in the afternoon. Fortunately the staff did not give up. This shows that he wanted to change certain things and that he did not want to adapt."

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A glance at Lionel Messi's PSG stint

Lionel Messi joined PSG as a free agent in the summer of 2021 after Barcelona were unable to renew his contract due to La Liga's wage cap rules. He played two seasons for the French club.

While he won the Ligue 1 title on both occasions, Messi failed to guide the team past the Round of 16 in the UEFA Champions League in either season. Hence, it was not a very illustrious stint for the Argentine.

He played 75 games for the Parisians, scoring 32 goals and providing 34 assists. The numbers were not at par with the level fans are used to from the Argentine.