Sports
Messi apologises to PSG for unauthorised Saudi trip
After taking an unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia, Lionel Messi has apologized to his teammates at Paris Saint-Germain and says he will wait for the club to decide what to do with him.
For taking the trip, the club placed the Argentina captain on a two-week suspension.
It happened after PSG’s third loss in six games when they played at home to Lorient on Sunday, a game in which Messi played the whole 90 minutes.
“I am sorry for what I did and I wait to see what the club decides,” Messi said in a video posted on Instagram.
“I honestly thought we were going to have the day off after the match as had happened in the previous weeks.
“I had organised this trip to Saudi Arabia having cancelled it previously. This time I couldn’t cancel it.”
Read Also: Messi suspended by PSG over Saudi trip
Messi, who has a role as a tourism ambassador for Saudi Arabia, has also been fined by the club, and is set to leave PSG when his contract expires in the summer.
PSG top Ligue 1 by five points with five games to play but are out of the Champions League and lost in the last 16 of the French Cup.
There were fan protests following their defeat to Lorient. Fans also gathered outside the home of the club’s Brazilian forward Neymar on Wednesday, chanting for him to leave the club.
The 31-year-old is out for rest of the reason because of an ankle injury.
The actions of the supporters prompted the club to increase security at the homes of Messi, Neymar, Italy midfielder Marco Verratti and manager Christophe Galtier, as well as at the club’s training ground.
“Regarding the protests in front of a player’s home, we have to be careful with that. Private life must remain private,” said Galtier.
“I can understand the anger, the disappointment of our fans. You may protest at the training ground or at the PSG office or after a match at the Parc des Princes but I cannot accept it at anyone’s house.”
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