Barcelona player Dani Alves has asserted that Lionel Messi is not performing upto his extraordinary standards at PSG because he is not happy at the club and expressed his desire to see the Argentinean back at the Camp Nou. Messi moved to the French club on a free transfer in the summer.

Lionel Messi was forced to leave Barcelona in the previous summer as his boyhood club could not afford to keep the Argentina international in their books owing to their financial woes off the pitch. The seven-time Ballon d’Or award winner joined Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer as he looked to replicate his world-class performances from Spain in France. 

However, the all-time great has made a slow start to life at Paris following a series of injuries and a bout with Covid-19 over the last few months. The Argentinean attacker has made 26 appearances for the French side while scoring seven goals and providing 11 assists across all competitions. Failure to progress into the next rounds of the Champions League combined with his lack of impact on the pitch has led to criticism from fans and media alike.

Messi is under contract at Parc des Princes until 2023 with the option of an extra year although Alves expressed his doubts on whether the former Barcelona star will stay for the duration of his contract.

“Leo always told me where are you going to be better than here? Even when it came out that he was leaving, I sent him the same message that he told me. For whatever reason he is not here and I hope he can come back,” Alves told ESPN.

“For me, no, he is not enjoying himself at PSG, because Leo makes this game special, and he does it when he is having a good time, because when he is having a good time, the others enjoy it. For me it is out of place, right now Leo is out of place there. Because Leo for me lived in the best place in the world to practice what he loves,” he added.