Lionel Messi has apologised to his Paris Saint-Germain team-mates for skipping training in a video on social media.
PSG were embarrassingly beaten 3-1 at home by Lorient on Sunday, with the first-team squad having their planned day off cancelled.
However, Messi was not present at training at the start of the week as he was in Saudi Arabia for a planned trip as part of his contract with the country’s tourist board. He had twice cancelled on such a visit earlier in the season.
Les Parisiens opted to suspend Messi for two weeks following this indiscretion and he is now set to miss their next two matches, which could prove crucial after rivals Marseille worked themselves into the Ligue 1 title race.
Messi has now taken to social media to issue an apology, releasing a video on his Instagram story.
“I thought we were going to have a day off after the game as always. I had this trip organised and I couldn’t cancel it. I had already canceled it before,” Messi said, donning a suit and speaking in a serious tone.
“I apologise to my teammates and I’m waiting for what the club wants to do with me.”
Lionel Messi’s PSG future
PSG are in the midst of a cultural crisis, with fans protesting against the club’s ownerships on the streets of Paris and even outside the house of star forward Neymar this week – 90min understands he could be offered a route out of France by Newcastle.
In regards to Messi, sources have told 90min that PSG have accepted he will leave once his contract expires in the summer.
The 35-year-old is understood to be focused on a return to Barcelona, with La Blaugrana making a reunion their top transfer priority despite their well-documented financial problems..