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Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) could only manage a 1-1 draw against Benfica on Wednesday (October 5) in the UEFA Champions League. Despite dropping points, Christophe Galtier's men remain atop Group H after three games, ahead of Benfica on goal difference.
Meanwhile, former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher wants Lionel Messi to win the FIFA World Cup this year. Elsewhere, Neymar has opened up on his ambitions with the Parisians this year.
On that note, here's a look at the key PSG transfer stories as on October 6, 2022:
Jamie Carragher wants Lionel Messi to win World Cup
Jamie Carragher wants Lionel Messi to win the World Cup this year. The Argentinean has enjoyed a highly successful career and continues to perform at the peak of his powers for PSG. However, the Holy Grail of the game has eluded him so far.
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Speaking on CBS Sports’ Golazo, as cited by PSG Talk, Carragher named Messi as the greatest player to grace the beautiful game.
“He’s the best player I think all three of us have ever seen. You’ve got greats that come before, obviously. Pele, maybe Johan Cruyff. Of course, we saw Maradona. But I would say Lionel Messi is the greatest player to ever play football,” said Carragher.
He added:
“And that may not be universal in everybody’s eyes because everyone associates you have to almost win a World Cup. And I would love nothing more than in Qatar for Argentina (and) Lionel Messi to win the World Cup, just to cement them where I see him, but in everybody’s eyes as the greatest player to ever play the game.”
Messi has registered eight goals and as many assists in 13 games this season.
Neymar opens up on his ambitions with PSG and Brazil
Neymar has said that he's aiming for more success with club and country this season.
The Brazilian has been in blistering form this season for PSG and has become a key figure under new manager Christophe Galtier. Neymar is also the undisputed star of his national team.
Speaking to the club’s website, the Brazilian said that he's happy with his start to the new season.
"I don't think there is a new Neymar. I think just that things have dropped into place. I'm having a very good start to the season, like when I came here and in my first two or three years. I'm very happy to have started my season well, whether it be with Paris Saint-Germain or the Brazil national team. The aim this year is to win with both teams, to win everything with Paris and Brazil," said Neymar.
He added:
"We have a World Cup coming up, and we know just how difficult that competition is. But I have a dream of winning it, just like the Champions League will be soon in Paris, I'm sure of that."
Neymar has scored 11 goals and set up 12 more for club and country this season from 15 games.
Christophe Galtier reflects on frustrating midweek draw
Christophe Galtier bemoans that PSG were not decisive enough against Benfica on Wednesday. The Ligue 1 giants failed to win despite taking the lead through Messi.
Speaking after the game, Galtier said that the hosts caused them trouble with their long balls.
"We scored a great goal, and I think that at that point, Benfica were having more and more issues pressing, but also played long balls that caused us to drop off. We conceded the goal, which was a bit unfortunate, even though Benfica created chances in the first half, and Gigio was very effective at dealing with the ball over the top," said Galtier.
Galtier said that the Parisians improved after the break but rued the missed chances.
"In the second half, we hassled them on the ball more, won more of the ball a lot higher up the pitch, which gave us the feeling of dominating a lot more. When we won the ball, we maybe lacked a little mobility and depth in the first half, which we then had in the second," said Galtier.
He added:
"We definitely dominated that half, but without managing to score the second goal. We create lots of chances, but we don't score as many as we create in the end. There were lots of risks taken; we really pushed forward a lot. It's down to us to be vigilant when we lose the ball."
The Parisians have won two of their three games in the Champions League this season.
