For several days, excitement reigned in the Reims area at the idea of being the scene of La Pulga's first steps in Ligue 1 Uber Eats. And the reception reserved for the superstar Argentine was equal to the enormous craze he generated. However, before the match, Leo Messi and the other Parisian substitutes did not warm up on the pitch as is the tradition, but in the dressing room, perhaps to remain impervious to the madness in the stands.
Cheered by the public
His name was pronounced last during the presentation of the teams and was cheered by a Stade Auguste-Delaune (20,525 spectators) packed for the occasion. And when he took his place on the bench, where he sat next to his compatriot Leandro Paredes, the fans behind him took out their cameras and phones to immortalise the moment. At half-time, he did not fail to smile at the fans but also at Neymar, his former teammate at Barcelona (2013-2017), whom he replaced on the hour mark. The clamour was amplified five minutes later when he came on as a substitute. It was a wink of fate that Kylian Mbappé, at the heart of an ultimately fruitless transfer saga between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid, completed his double (63rd) when the whole stadium had eyes only for Messi.Collector's edition
As soon as six-time Ballon D'Or winner Messi touched the ball, murmurs came from the stands. His first pass was with one touch, and fans had to wait until the 78th minute to seehis first run with the ball in a Parisian shirt: after intercepting the ball, he cut inside before feeding Mbappé on his right. The Frenchman broke into the box and sent a cross back towards his Argentinian teammate, but to no avail. The two stars looked for each other a lot on the pitch and often tried to combine, with another cross back from the Frenchman to the former Barcelona player in stoppage time (90th+2). The two players hugged each other after the final whistle before going with their team-mates to thank the hundreds of fans who had made the short journey from Paris. Several of the players tried to exchange shirts with Messi, but he politely declined. However, he agreed to pose for a collector's photo with Reims goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic's son in his arms. What a gift!
>> Statattack Round 4: Messi's debut under the microscope
Lionel Messi Sunday night made his long-awaited debut for Paris Saint-Germain as the Parisians recorded a ‘routine’ 2-0 win over Stade Reims in their Ligue 1 tie at Stade Auguste Delaune.
Messi, who joined PSG from Barcelona on a two-year contract earlier this month, replaced Brazil striker Neymar in the 66th minute.
Though the 34-year-old Argentine did not score on his debut, he showed some glimpse of what to expect from him in the days ahead.,
Before Messi was brought on in Sunday’s tie, Mauricio Pochettino’s side were already cruising to victory with a goal in either half from Kylian Mbappe putting them in firm control on the night
Messi looked to play a central role in his first cameo appearance in French football with Mbappe switching out wide following Neymar’s late exit.
PSG who are occupying the top spot already with four wins in four games will be home to Clermont Foot in the next round of games in Ligue 1 after the international break.
While he has started on a winning note in the domestic league, Messi and indeed PSG will be more preoccupied with their chase for Champions League glory.
Manchester City have been drawn against Paris Saint-Germain in the group stage of the 2021-22 Champions League.
RB Leipzig and Club Brugge were also drawn in Group A with Messi’s PSG .
Man City beat PSG 4-1 on aggregate to reach last season’s final, which they lost 1-0 to Chelsea at the Estadio do Dragao in Portugal.
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Published 9:44, 11 August 2021 BST
| Last updated 10:59, 11 August 2021 BST
After more than two decades at the Catalan outfit, the six-time Ballon d'Or winner flew into Paris on Tuesday after agreeing personal terms with the Ligue 1 giants.
Thousands of fans flocked to both the airport and the Parc Des Princes to greet the Argentine, with many eager to see the 34-year-old to make his debut, but when will it be?
- The eye watering breakdown of Lionel Messi's PSG contract
Messi PSG Debut: When will Messi play his first game?
Messi is likely to make his debut in PSG's second game of the season this weekend after he declared "I am ready to start now" in a recent press conference. PSG host Strasbourg on Saturday, 14th August with the game kicking-off at 8pm BST.
It's unlikely to be a taxing game for Messi or the star-studded PSG side -- Strasbourg finished 15th out of 20 teams in Ligue 1 last season and lost their first game of season at home to Angers 2-0, leaving them bottom of the league.
How To Watch Messi's PSG Debut On UK TV
BT Sport own the rights to Ligue 1 games in the UK, so it's the place to go to watch his first game.
Other upcoming PSG fixtures include:
- Brest vs PSG - Friday, 20th August at 8pm BST
- Reims vs PSG - Sunday, 29th August at 7:45pm BST
- PSG vs Clermont Foot - Sunday, 12th September. Kick-off time is TBD
PSG unveiled Messi on Wednesday morning, with the Argentine affirming his aim to win silverware with the club and the Champions League is at the top of his list.
He's primed to form one of the most dangerous attacking tridents in world football with Kylian Mbappe and former Barca colleague Neymar.
But will he be able to replicate that same form in a PSG strip? Only time will tell.
Robert is a journalist at LADbible and SPORTbible. As an experienced reporter, with stints at The Sun, Sky News, MailOnline and The Mirror, he exclusively revealed the first coronavirus case in the UK. You can contact Robert at .
@robertkylemannAug 30, 2021
Lionel Messi's debut with Paris Saint-Germain averaged over 2 million viewers in Spain, making it the most-watched French football game in the country ever.
Messi, 34, finally made his first appearance for PSG in Sunday's 2-0 win over Reims following his move from Barcelona on a free transfer this summer.
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- Weekend review: Messi outshone by Mbappe on PSG debut
The Argentina international replaced Neymar for the final 30 minutes, while Real Madrid target Kylian Mbappe scored both goals for PSG.
Messi's debut was broadcast on the free-to-air channel Telecinco in Spain, with figures released on Monday revealing the match had an average audience of 2.2 million viewers, making it the most-watched programme in the country Sunday.
Lionel Messi enjoyed his debut at PSG as they secured a 2-0 win at Reims. Photo by John Berry/Getty ImagesIn total, over 6.7 million people tuned in to watch PSG's win at some point during the 90 minutes.
Barcelona's 2-1 win over Getafe in LaLiga, meanwhile, which was on pay-per-view television, averaged 591,000 viewers.
The PSG game was also shown live on the Twitch channel of Ibai Llanos, a Spanish streamer and esports commentator.
Llanos' broadcast drew an average audience of over 300,000, peaking at 500,000. The total number of people who tuned in to the stream topped 2 million.
The rights to the French league were bought by Barca defender Gerard Pique following Messi's move to Paris in August.
A source told ESPN last week Pique's company, Kosmos, plan to sublicense the rights this season, with Telecinco and Llanos only securing access to Messi's debut.
Pique has struck up a close relationship with Llanos in recent months and appeared as a guest on the pregame show Sunday. Through Kosmos, he streamed the Copa America final between Argentina and Brazil on Llanos' Twitch channel in July.