Lionel Messi extends goal drought at PSG, still goalless in Ligue 1

A lot of hype surrounded Lionel Messi's arrival at Paris Saint-Germain, with the streets of the French capital completely electrified and filled with fans hoping to welcome the Argentine to the city. However, he has not had an explosive start to the season as expected, and has remained goalless in Ligue 1 after five appearances.

On Friday, Messi was joined by Argentina teammate Angel Di Maria and former Barcelona partner in crime Neymar Jr. in the PSG front line as they faced defending champions Lille. Messi failed to score, and he was unexpectedly replaced at half-time.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino apparently decided to take the precaution after the six-time Ballon d'Or winner complained of a muscle issue throughout the week. That marked Messi's fifth league match without a single goal. Even in the 45 minutes that he was on the pitch, Messi had a lacklustre performance and was missing his deadly accuracy.

Meanwhile, PSG were still able to stage a come from behind 2-1 victory thanks to late goals from Marquinhos and Di Maria. Lille were clearly the stronger team in the early stages of the match, taking the lead after half an hour. However, they were not able to keep the intensity until the very end, with PSG's late rally helping them secure the victory in front of the home crowd at the Parc des Princes.

To be fair, despite his Ligue 1 drought, Messi has not been entirely ineffective this season. In the European stage, he has been far more efficient scoring three goals in the Champions League so far.

It appears as though Pochettino will need to manage Messi's appearances wisely, as he has become evidently more prone to injury. Apart from the current muscle strain, he was also replaced early in a match against Lyon earlier in the season due to a knee issue.

Nevertheless, even without Messi magic, PSG are sitting on top of the Ligue 1 table, 10 points clear of the nearest challenger.