Paris Saint-Germain have been handed an injury boost ahead of their Champions League tie with Manchester City - with Lionel Messi back in contention to participate.
The 34-year-old has missed the past two Ligue 1 matches against Metz and Montpellier with a knee injury, and he faces a race against time to be fit for Tuesday's European clash at the Parc des Princes.
But AS reports that Messi is edging closer to full fitness ahead of that all-important contest with City, and that he even trained with his teammates on Sunday morning.
PSG can't afford to drop many more points in the Champions League group stages, having been held to a shock draw by Club Brugge in the opening round of fixtures. Messi started that game alongside all-star forwards Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, but they struggled to find any real cohesion.
Mauricio Pochettino's men followed up that tie with a late league win over Lyon, although even in success, there was further drama. Messi was substituted by the Argentinian coach with the scores locked at 1-1, and he refused to shake his manager's hand in disbelief of the decision.
That was the last time Messi pulled on the PSG shirt, and there'll be plenty more eyes on him and his performance when they host Man City in midweek. The Citizens blew RB Leipzig away with a 6-3 victory at the Etihad, and they were also excellent in the 1-0 win over Chelsea at the weekend.
Defeat for PSG would leave them needing positive results in both of their meetings with Leipzig, or they could face the embarrassment of being sent down into the Europa League.
Pochettino will be desperate for his superstars to click in front of goal, although given that Mbappe very publicly criticised Neymar while sitting on the bench against Montpellier, togetherness feels a long way off.
Source : 90min