UCL: You’ll never win Champions League with Messi, he’s a passenger – Carragher warns PSG
Jamie Carragher has sounded it clear that the presence of Lionel Messi in the Paris Saint-Germain team would cost them the Champions League.
According to the former Liverpool star, PSG won’t win the competition as they are ‘carrying three passengers’ in Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.
The French side only finished aa runners-up in Group A after suffering a 2-1 defeat in the hands of Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday evening.
Mbappe gave the visitors the lead but City fired back through Raheem Sterling before Gabriel Jesus scored the winner with 14 minutes remaining.
City delivered a dominant display against the French side with Messi and Neymar both struggling to make much of an impact.
And the Liverpool legend believes the Ligue1 giants’ forwards are holding the team back because of their poor work rate.
“I just don’t believe teams can carry anybody now,” Carragher told Paramount Plus.
“Let’s say the four teams who I think one of them will win the Champions League – Man City, Liverpool, Chelsea or Bayern Munich – they do not carry one passenger in the team.
“They [PSG] are carrying three, they’ve got absolutely no chance of winning the Champions League, Paris Saint-Germain, absolutely no chance.
“I get frustrated watching it because with Mbappe more than anybody. I can almost understand Messi to a certain extent, he’s 34, he has to save himself for certain moments, I still don’t think they can carry him, let’s not forget Barcelona haven’t won a Champions League for a long time.
“But Mbappe is 22, he should be sprinting back and getting back helping his teammates against a top Man City team. This thing about walking around the pitch, it’s not for me.
“When I see [Mohamed] Salah and [Sadio] Mane for Liverpool sprinting everywhere, I see [Kevin] De Bruyne, I see Mahrez, Raheem Sterling the same, Thomas Muller for Bayern Munich, [Robert] Lewandowski.
“I just can’t accept, I don’t care how good they are, that they don’t work for the team. The days of carrying passengers are long gone.
“And that’s why the best three teams in Europe right now – four teams as Chelsea are Champions League winners – the other teams won’t win it.
“I’ve said this about [Cristiano] Ronaldo as well but at least Ronaldo is getting goals. Ronaldo is a passenger without the ball, his goals are making up for that at this minute
“In the Champions League games, certainly tonight their goals haven’t made up for it.
“Unless you score, you’re carrying passengers, and at this level of football you’ll have no chance, Manchester United won’t win the Champions League.”
