Non-stop action. Great goals. Controversies galore. Sensational passes. Unreal drama. European football rarely lacks for talking points after any given weekend of football, but with so much happening it can often be hard to focus on the biggest moments. ESPN India attempts to single out one moment from all the action across Europe's top 5 leagues (league action only) that lit up the weekend.
This weekend, we pick Lionel Messi's last-gasp free-kick that led Paris Saint Germain to a 4-3 win over Lille.
'Messi' 'Messi!' 'Messi!'
Lionel Messi picked up the ball, held it in his hands for a moment and then gave it a little spin. It was the 95th minute of PSG's home game vs Lille and he had seen very little of the round thing. That spin felt like it was done almost to reassure the ball that it was back at his feet now. The score read 3-3.
'Messi' 'Messi!' 'Messi!'
It had been the Kylian Mbappe show for PSG till then. He had opened the scoring with a goal that evoked memories of prime ('96-'99) Ronaldo: bullying two defenders as he pushed past them like they were sliding doors (while nutmegging one of them) and slotting home under pressure from a third. He had equalised to make 3-3 with a sliding finish that looked like it had been lifted from a particularly outlandish anime.
'Messi' 'Messi!' 'Messi!'
In between these six goals, both PSG and Lille had been playing some incredible attacking football, creating numerous chances at either end. Messi had been one of the only players to not contribute to the spectacle. To say he was peripheral would be an understatement: look back at the match and even in an extended highlights package you'd probably only see a couple of failed long-range passes, a shot from an offside position that was saved, and a dribble that teased a throwback but ended in a cul-de-sac.
In fact, his best moment from the match had come when he hadn't even touched the ball -- a clever dummy playing a crucial role in the build-up to Neymar's goal (PSG's second, sandwiched between the two Mbappe strikes).
'Messi' 'Messi!' 'Messi!'
As he kept the ball on the marked spot and took four quick, deliberate paces back, there was no one around him.
Usually at PSG, his great friend Neymar would have been next to him: but a thundering challenge had seen Neymar's ankle twist horribly and he'd been stretchered off early in the second half, tears in his eyes.
On the sidelines, meanwhile, PSG coach Christophe Galtier (who had, of course, led Lille to their remarkable league triumph in '21) was feeling the heat. After Jonathan Bamba had made it 2-3 to Lille, Galtier's boss, the PSG sporting director Luis Campos, had marched out of the stands and into the technical area -- to shout and gesticulate at the players. The off-field drama was as compelling as the on-field entertainment.
'Messi' 'Messi!' 'Messi!'
As Messi waited, the chant filled the Parc des Princes. It was a simple one, and you could have mistaken it for prayer from the bleachers seeking the urgent intervention of one of the greatest ever to kick a ball around. Listen closely, though, and you could tell it wasn't one. Prayers don't come with an aura of inevitability. There was no forlorn hope in this collective voice of Paris, no hint of a plea. This was more of an announcement: 'Hear ye, hear ye, Leo Messi is about to do his thing.'
'Messi' 'Messi!' 'Messi!'
Where he had taken four steps back, he took four forwards. Two with a little shuffle on the spot, one to close the gap and a fourth to plant his right foot next to the ball, his ankle bending at an implausible angle. The clock read 94:25 when his left connected with the ball. The connection was so sweet that he found the gap between the wall and penalty box melee, the ball clanging off the inside of the keeper's left-hand post and into the back of the net.
With the ball placed dead centre, just past the D, he had both sides to choose from; but since Lucas Chevalier had taken a step to the right to cover for his wall (what the fear of Messi can do to you), Messi chose the keeper's side. And made it look unstoppable.
(Club) Goal #699. Freekick #61. PSG 4 - 3 Lille. The lead at the top maintained at five. A winless run of three (longest since 2012!) ended.
'Messi' 'Messi!' 'Messi!'
The chant morphed into one large roar as the stadium exploded the moment it left Messi's foot. The moment it hit the net, Mbappe sprinted from across the box to hug, and lift, Messi. So did Sergio Ramos (isn't that still such an incongruous sight?).
Galtier raced down the touchline to leap into the pile of players surrounding Messi. Everything about the celebrations showed what an important goal it had been.
That's just what he does...for 95 minutes Lionel Messi had done nothing (much). In the end, though, he made all the difference.