Paris Saint-Germain head coach Mauricio Pochettino has admitted that he did not expect the club to sign Lionel Messi this summer.
The 34-year-old Argentine, who joined from Barcelona on a free transfer in August, made his debut for the Ligue 1 outfit before the international break, coming on as a substitute in the 2-0 win away to Reims.
Messi is set to make his Champions League debut for PSG on Wednesday away at Club Brugge, and speaking ahead of their trip to Belgium, Pochettino stated that it took a while to process that the club had signed the six-time Ballon d'Or winner.
"I didn't think it was possible [Messi signing for PSG], and when an opportunity appears and everything goes so fast, you can't immediately process it," Pochettino told UEFA's official website.
"However, there's that connection: we both are Argentinian, we both support Newell's Old Boys, we both come from Rosario.
"I have also admired him for a long time when facing him as an opponent, so having him now training with us is really nice. We hope that, together, we will be able to achieve what the club desires."
If Messi is to feature on Wednesday, then he would be making his 150th appearance in the Champions League as well as his first away from Barcelona, who he scored 120 goals for in the competition between 2004 and 2021.
Oliver Thomas
