Arguably the greatest footballer of all time, Lionel Messi, once again proved to be the difference-maker as Paris Saint-Germain came from behind to beat Toulouse in the Ligue 1 on Saturday. Messi struck a stunning second-half winner for the Parisiens, scoring from outside the penalty box, proving that he isn’t just a dribbler who “passes the ball” into the back of the net but also a scorer from large distances. Courtesy of Messi’s strike, the French giants secured a 2-1 win, despite the absence of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.
Dutch midfielder Branco van den Boomen gave mid-table Toulouse the lead at the Parc des Princes from a 20th-minute free-kick, only for Achraf Hakimi to curl in the equaliser with half-time approaching.
Messi then put PSG in front just before the hour mark with a glorious first-time strike on his left foot low into the corner of the net from just outside the area.
It was Messi’s 10th Ligue 1 goal of the season and his 15th for his club this campaign, as the World Cup winner stepped up in the absence of PSG’s two other superstar attackers.
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“Leo is holding the team together,” Galtier told broadcaster Amazon Prime.
“It is not just two players we are missing. There is Kylian and ‘Ney’ but also Marco Verratti and Sergio Ramos.
“He takes on the role of leader naturally, and he did so in midweek too. He was so important to the way we played. He takes the initiative. We need to give him the ball even more.”
Messi hit the post from a corner and Toulouse had another goal disallowed for offside before the home side drew level seven minutes from half-time as Hakimi collected a Soler pass, cut in from the right flank and curled a shot on his left foot into the far corner from 20 metres.
Hakimi then turned provider as he set up Messi to make it 2-1 on 58 minutes, the goal standing despite Toulouse coach Philippe Montanier feeling it should have been disallowed as Marquinhos blocked the goalkeeper’s view while in an offside position.
With AFP inputs
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