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Paris Saint-Germain became the team with the most titles in France on Saturday when it won its 11th title in its history, and coach Christophe Galtier insists: Don't take it lightly. It was a long season for PSG, full of ups and downs. After opening the season with a run of 17 games without defeat, after the World Cup there was a decline. It started with a defeat against Lance earlier this year, and a disappointing streak that at times cast doubt on the championship.
"In the local setting, it's a success," Galtier said, "We are the champions. A catastrophic season is when PSG don't win the league. Although it may seem easy, being a champion requires performance. Twice in recent years PSG have not won the title, and these have been very, very difficult seasons. There were some disappointing sequences, in the second half of the season. We're going to analyze everything calmly, in hindsight, and with a lot of clarity."
Galtier claims that he deserves to continue for a second season, although the criticism against him this past season was many and varied. "Yes, I think he deserves to continue. I gave everything I had, I managed to hold on to some very difficult moments. Personally, I feel I deserve to continue."
Saint-Étienne has 10 titles, Marseille 9, Monaco and Nantes with 8 each. "Let's not take winning the title as trivial," Galtier said, "We also saw in the Bundesliga that it's not an easy thing to take a championship. Now I just think about my wife who didn't have an easy season, and Luis Campos who lost his mother."
Chairman Nasser Al Khelaifi said: "This is a historic moment for PSG. The club's 11th title is a reward for all the hard work we have put in here over the last 12 years. I want to thank everyone who contributed to the success this season, we can't wait for next week to celebrate in front of our crowd in the park."
"Separate in style". Messi (Photo by Getty Images, JEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN/AFP)
PSG's celebrations were overshadowed by what was probably Leo Messi's last game for the club. Symbolically, Messi said goodbye to the fans who did not make life easy for him with an evening that is all an illustration of his historic greatness. Messi scored PSG's only goal of the match, becoming the top scorer in the history of Europe's top five leagues with 496 goals - one more than his eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
Messi peaked with 577 appearances, while Ronaldo scored 495 goals in 626 games. Overall, Messi scored an average of 0.86 goals per game. Ronaldo, for example, has 0.79 goals per game, and Gerd Muller, who ranks third in the table, has scored 0.85.
Messi set another incredible record when he became the most decorated player in world football history alongside Dani Alves. The PSG title was the 43rd team title of Messi's career. He has won 10 Spanish championships, 7 cups in Spain, 8 times the Spanish Super Copa, 4 times the UEFA Champions League, 3 times the FIFA Club World Cup, 3 times the UEFA Super Cup, 20 times the French Championship, 25 time the French Cup, <> World Cup, once in the Copa America, once in the Finalissima, once in the FIFA U-<> World Cup and also has an Olympic gold medal.
"Leo said goodbye in style to PSG, proving to her what she is missing out on by her treatment of him," Argentine media wrote.
According to Fabrizio Romano, "Messi will leave PSG in the coming weeks", and Barcelona continue to insist that he is on his way to a comeback to the club where he spent most of his career. According to Mundo Deportivo, Messi and his father Jorge, who serves as his agent, are already aware of the details of the contract that will be offered to Messi as part of Barcelona's recovery plan, which appears to be approved soon by the Spanish league.
As part of the contract, Messi will settle for many millions he could earn in Saudi Arabia, but he will earn one euro more than Robert Lewandowski, Barcelona's top earner last season, "to make him understand that he is at the top of the hierarchy." According to Barcelona estimates, the club's revenue will increase by <>% if Messi does return.
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- French League
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- Paris Saint-Germain