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Reuters

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Reuters

It’s tough being the best player in the world, as the standards are almost always so unbelievably high, and players rarely meet them. This phenomenon worsens when the player is getting older, and Paris Saint Germain star Lionel Messi meets all the criteria.

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He recently won his seventh Ballon d’Or, beating the likes of Bayern Munich star, Robert Lewandowski, and Chelsea’s Jorginho. However, things have gone downhill for him ever since he joined PSG, and left the club where he spent over 20 years of his life.

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Messi has only scored two league goals this season for PSG in 14 games, adding seven assists. His output has declined domestically, but he had been in top form in the UEFA Champions League, scoring five goals in five group stage games. However, that changed as well.

Lionel Messi and his performance against Real Madrid

PSG faced Real Madrid last night in their UCL Round-of-16 tie in the heavyweight clash of the year. The French club won the match courtesy of a late Kylian Mbappe winner in the 94th minute. The French world cup winner dribbled past three Madrid players and nutmegged Thibaut Courtois to give PSG the advantage in the tie.

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However, Messi’s performance was very concerning. In fact, it was so worrying that French newspaper L’Equipe gave him a three out of ten rating for his efforts. Messi did miss a penalty in the 62nd minute, which would’ve helped PSG take the advantage much earlier than before.

It’s another performance that doesn’t match up to his insanely high standards. However, Kylian Mbappe is living up to them quite handsomely.

Kylian Mbappe and his numbers for PSG this season

Mbappe has been in top form for his club this season, scoring 12 goals and adding nine assists in 22 Ligue 1 games. He has also scored five goals in seven UCL matches. However, this could be his last season at the club.

Kylian Mbappe’s contract expires in five months’ time and the Frenchman has been linked with a move to the Spanish club, Real Madrid, for the past few months. It’ll be interesting to see if Mbappe will decide to stay in the end or not.

Read More: Real Madrid’s President Tricked an FC Barcelona Captain Into Joining His Club Through a Simple Wager- Here’s How

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Aniket Awasthi

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Aniket Awasthi is a soccer author at EssentiallySports. This STEM undergraduate combines an insatiable urge to write with his admiration for soccer to enhance his journalism. He lists charismatic names like Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford as his favorite players, but he is a great admirer of Karim Benzema too. Aniket also volunteers with an NGO that engages in causes ranging from women's empowerment to the prevention of climate change and pollution. Aniket is someone who is intrigued by the beauty of rhymes and regards himself as an amateur poet. He runs a poetry website called Words Stringed Together. Besides this, he too plays soccer, just like the entities he covers.

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