The Paris St-Germain has suspended its captain Lionel Messi for two weeks after traveling to Saudi Arabia without obtaining permission from the club. The 35-year-old football superstar was said to have requested a pass to enable him to travel to the country but was not permitted before he proceeded for the journey on April 30th, hence Messi being suspended for two games and fined two weeks' wages. The reported suspension comes at a delicate time as the French club had hoped to extend the Argentinian star’s contract beyond this season.
Reports of Messi’s trip to Saudi Arabia followed PSG’s surprise 3-1 loss to Lorient on Sunday, leaving the defending champions with a five-point lead over Marseille with five games left in the season. Messi played the full game.
A club source indicated that the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner would “probably” be sidelined for two weeks, noting that “nobody is more important than the club”, the Agence France-Presse news agency reported.
Messi, who will turn 36 in June, played in PSG’s 3-1 home defeat by Lorient in Ligue 1 on Sunday, AFP reported. He then traveled to Saudi Arabia to fulfill commitments as part of a contract with the country’s tourist office. As a result, Messi missed a training session penciled in for Monday after the weekend defeat, before the PSG squad was given a day off on Tuesday.
