Lionel Messi’s tenure at Paris Saint-Germain ended up being removed from what many anticipated, wrapping up with an abrupt departure after the 2022–23 season. Regardless of lining up with stars like Kylian Mbappé and Neymar, the membership’s former sporting director has now supplied perception into what went fallacious for the Argentine icon in Paris.
Leonardo Araújo was one of many key architects behind PSG’s trendy period after Nasser Al-Khelaïfi took over, serving to usher in marquee names like Zlatan Ibrahimović and Carlo Ancelotti. His second stint as sporting director started in 2019 and ended sooner than anticipated in Could 2022, however he was nonetheless on the membership lengthy sufficient to assist full the blockbuster signing of Messi.
In an interview with RMC Sport, Leonardo spoke candidly concerning the challenges the Argentine legend confronted at PSG: “Messi needed to remain at Barca, however as soon as Barcelona couldn’t preserve him, PSG turned the primary choice. After that, there have been plenty of misunderstandings.“
The previous sporting director went on to deal with Messi’s battle to adapt each to the membership and to life in Paris. “It was tough for him. He had been in the identical place for 20 years, and you then transfer. Saying he wasn’t completely happy is a method of defending himself. There was the elimination in opposition to Actual Madrid (within the 2021–22 Champions League); it was sophisticated,” he concluded.
Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar Jr of Paris Saint-Germain in opposition to Actual Madrid.
Mbappé has stated through the years that his partnership with Messi was particular, and that enjoying alongside him made him a greater participant. Nonetheless, these emotions, together with Neymar’s presence within the attacking trio, by no means absolutely translated on the sector, as Messi left with solely three trophies and consecutive eliminations within the Champions League spherical of 16, the membership’s foremost goal.
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Leonardo and a tricky relationship with Mbappé
The yr 2022 proved turbulent for PSG, with Actual Madrid circling as Mbappé’s contract neared its expiration and the French star reportedly making calls for past the membership’s plans. Mbappé finally renewed that yr, a choice that coincided with Leonardo’s exit as sporting director.
Within the interview, Leonardo stated Mbappé ought to have left a yr earlier than signing his extension: “He ought to have left as a result of he needed to go away. He needed to go away, so go! That’s how I’m… For me, when you have a possibility with a participant everybody desires, you need to take it (and let him go). You possibly can’t say, ‘No, keep right here, please.’ For me, that doesn’t exist.”
Leonardo left the membership in Could 2022, with Luis Campos taking on as sporting director, and he mirrored on his relationship with Mbappé afterward. “I don’t know if he needed my head. It was a distinct imaginative and prescient at a sure level, and the scenario made it unimaginable to proceed. (…) I had good moments (with Mbappé’s entourage). In the long run, it was tougher. We didn’t agree.”
