After six Champions League group games, Messi has played 26 goals in all competitions this season, ranking first in the top five leagues, which is enough to reflect Messi's return to peak form. ESPN praised Messi as "the biggest favourite for the Ballon d'Or", so how did Messi come back to life after a disappointing season?
From 0.84 to 1.44 goals per game
In the 2021-22 season, Paris were eliminated by Real Madrid in the quarterfinals of the Champions League. After that, Paris fans kept booing Messi and Neymar.
Needless to say, in his first season with Paris, Messi was not as good as it could be. In Ligue 1, Messi scored just six goals, provided 14 assists and averaged 0.84 goals per game. This statistic keeps Messi among the 20 players with the highest goalscoring rate in Europe.
However, it was also Messi's worst performance since 2008, averaging 1.27 goals per game in his career since making his first appearance at Barca in 2004.
This season, Messi has taken a fresh look, scoring 12 goals and providing 14 assists in 18 appearances in all competitions, averaging 1.44 goals per game, 0.6 more than last season.
Get lost in Messi in the 14th arrondissement
Since 2010, Messi's most accustomed area of activity is the rectangular area directly in front of the outside of the penalty area, also known as Area 14. This area sits between the defender and the midfielder, where Messi can choose to break through, assist or pass the ball to make the most of the gap between the opponent's two lines.
In the last 12 years, Messi has made 1,990 passes in this area, ranking first among the five major league players, and second in 2,064 shots, behind Ronaldo (2,443).
However, due to tactical limitations, Messi "disappeared" in this area last season. He averaged just 7.8 passes per game in this area, the lowest since 2010, and for the first time since the 2014-15 season, his number of passes in this area was below 10.
Meanwhile, Messi averaged just 3.7 shots per game, the lowest since 2010, and he had just 4.7 touches in the box, compared to 7.5 previously.
From a tactical point of view, Pochettino asked Messi to step back, which led him away from the box, which was one of the important reasons for Messi's production cut. However, Messi averaged 10.8 straight shots per game in the offensive third zone last season, a career high, ranking first among players who played at least 750 minutes in the five major leagues.
Galti helped Messi return to the top
After taking charge of Paris, Galti changed the formation to 3412 and Messi returned to the forward position, which became one of the key reasons why Messi returned to his peak form.
This season, Messi has averaged 4.6 shots per game and 7.6 touches in the box, significantly exceeding last season and returning to his career average.
In the five major leagues, Messi's average number of shots per game is only lower than that of Mbappe and Mitrovic, while Messi and Trippier are the two players with the highest pass success rate in the penalty area of the five major leagues this season.
In just 12 Ligue 1 games, Messi has scored seven goals and provided 10 assists, more than last season's goal. This season, Messi has averaged 1.45 goals per game, second only to Haaland, Lewandowski and Neymar.
It is worth emphasizing that Messi still retreats frequently, organizing attacks in deeper positions. This season, Messi has averaged 10.1 passes per game into the attacking third zone, just 0.7 fewer than last season. The more flexible movement position has made Messi more active.
ESPN data shows that Messi has helped Paris improve his expected goal rate by 6.8 times compared to other players, followed by Mbappe (5.9 times) and Haaland (5.2 times).
After a disappointing performance in the 2021-22 season, the media criticized Messi for being "old", and he also encountered rare boos from fans. However, Messi has proven with his performances this season that he remains one of the best players in the world.
If Messi stays like this, he is expected to not only win the coveted World Cup, but also his eighth Ballon d'Or!