Lionel Messi recently scored a tremendous free-kick against Panama, making it his 800th senior career goal.

At the same time, the free-kick made it his 99th goal for Argentina, his 45th international friendly goal, and his first goal for Argentina in 2023.

Even though Messi and Paris Saint-Germain are literally out of the UEFA Champions League, being eliminated by Bayern Munich.

Nevertheless, the Argentine captain has been making headlines since the beginning of the 2022-2023 campaign.

Lionel is really trying his best at Parc des Princes, always showing up to help the Parisians on the pitch.

The seventh Ballon D’or winner was impressive in their international friendly against Panama.

He literally had 6 goal attempts before his free-kick goal in the second-half, two shots saved, and one woodwork.

Throughout the 90 minutes, the Argentine captain played 14 shots against Panama, the most he has ever had in a single game.

His previous best number of shots on goal was 12, of which he had on five occasions. However, he was on a different level on Friday.

Lionel Messi 800th senior career goal breakdown 

525 games
209 braces
108 penalties
542 inside the box
670 left foot
101 right foot
56 hat-tricks
62 free-kicks
26 headers
88 outside the box
3 others

672 goals – Barcelona
29 goals – Paris Saint-Germain
99 goals – Argentina

Obviously, Messi’s legacy in the world of football cannot be ignored. He remains one of the best footballers in history.

It’s uncertain if the Argentine captain will extend his contract with the Parisians, meaning he may head back to Barcelona next season.

Speaking of the 2022-2023 campaign, Messi has already lifted two trophies, which are the 2022 FIFA World Cup and the French Super Cup.

However, there’s a particular competition Messi has played in without winning it, which is the Coupe de France.

He can actually get the chance to win it this campaign, as the Parisians would be looking forward to winning more than the league title.

Statistically, Lionel Messi has played against 112 different opponents in his professional club career.

Ligue 1 Auxerre made it his 122nd victim, when he faced them in November 2022. Of course, that’s a very long journey.

Surprisingly, he has been able to score against 95 opponents out of 122 at club level.

And he scored or assisted against 105 of the 112 victims. Interestingly, he has many victims at the international level too.

As unbelievable as that sounds, Messi has his worst opponents at club level, they always frustrate the hell out of him.

There are three club teams the Argentine captain has played without scoring against; they are his nightmares.

As regards Messi’s playmaking prowess, he cannot face a team on different occasions without registering any goal contributions.

Clubs Lionel Messi has never scored against in his entire career

Inter Milan – Serie A

4 appearances
0 goals 

The Italian side doesn’t always go easy on the seventh Ballon D’or winner, they usually frustrate him throughout the 90 minutes.

Messi has made 4 appearances against Inter Milan without scoring, which is shocking considering his playmaking ability.

They normally face each other in the UEFA Champions League, but Messi has never scored against the Italian team.

Rubin Kazan – Russian Premier League

4 matches 
0 goals

Even though the Russian side are playing out of Europe’s top-5 leagues, they are one of the worst opponents for the Argentina international.

Apparently, Lionel has never featured against Kazan since his arrival at Paris Saint-Germain. Therefore, he played against them at Barcelona.

Messi also played 4 matches against Rubin Kazan in his entire football career at club level, unfortunately without scoring a goal.

Rennes – Ligue 1

4 games 
0 goals 

Rennes defeated Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 before the international break, back-to-back defeats in 2022-2023, 3 goals conceded.

Amazingly, Messi has featured against Rennes on four occasions without putting the ball into the net.

Even though Lionel has been able to score against 95 of his 122 victims. The French side remains one of his nightmares at club level.

Would Lionel Messi return to Barcelona this summer?

According to several reports, the Argentine captain is most likely to leave Parc des Princes at the end of the season.

His contract with Paris Saint-Germain ends in July, and he hasn’t been able to extend his deal with the Parisians.

Christophe Galtier is expected to leave PSG when the campaign ends, the manager hasn’t been impressive in all competitions.

They got eliminated from the UEFA Champions League by Bayern Munich, with Messi, Mbappe, and Neymar in the squad.

As a result, Paris Saint-Germain are most likely to reshuffle their squad before the start of 2023-2024 season.

Therefore, the seventh Ballon D’or winner may leave the Ligue 1 side, because there are no concrete talks for his extension at the moment.

However, Joan Laporta hasn’t said anything about Messi’s possible return to Spotify Camp Nou next campaign.

Sergio Agüero claimed that his countryman may return to La Liga, if the president is ready to talk to him.

Of course, almost all of Barcelona’s fans would be on cloud nine if the seventh Ballon D’or winner heads back to Spain.

Unfortunately, Joan Laporta would have to balance the team, as regards the financial fair play rules.

At the moment, Messi has a bigger chance of returning to Barcelona than staying with Paris Saint-Germain.