Messi To Return To PSG Next Week

World Cup champion Lionel Messi will resume his duties at Paris Saint-Germain the next week, according to his club's coach Christophe Galtier on Tuesday. Messi, 35, was the cornerstone of the Argentina team that won the World Cup in Qatar nine days ago.

He scored twice against France in the championship match, which ended in a triumph on penalties. After their third World Cup victory, he and his teammates went back to Argentina to celebrate. On the eve of PSG's match against Strasbourg, which will mark the return of Ligue 1 on Wednesday following the World Cup break, Galtier remarked that Leo "had a very great World Cup with his victory."

We decided that he would be off work until January 1 because he needed to travel back to Argentina for the festivities. He will arrive and start the season with us on either the second or third (January).

"He will have recovered for between 13 and 14 days." Messi might make his return at home against Angers on January 11 after missing two Ligue 1 games and the French Cup game at Chateauroux. His current contract in the French capital expires in the summer, therefore he is also likely to sit down with PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi and other key club executives to negotiate a one-season extension.

Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, two more PSG World Cup stars, "will be available for the encounter tomorrow (Wednesday)," according to Galtier. Mbappe, despite earning a hat-trick in the World Cup final, could even start after returning to practice just three days earlier.

Galtier stated, "We were sure to manage on a case-by-case basis. After speaking with him, Kylian was eager to join us.