Champions League: Lionel Messi scores superb 1st goal for PSG in 2-0 win against City
Paris(AP): Lionel Messi's superb first goal for Paris Saint-Germain was well worth the wait and delivered a timely reminder of the electric skill that has helped him win a record six Ballon d'Or trophies.
It also punished his former coach Pep Guardiola's team as PSG beat Manchester City 2-0 in the Champions League group stage on Tuesday.
Messi charged from midfield toward the penalty area in the 74th minute, opening up more space as Achraf Hakimi made a dummy run to his right, and received a clever flick from Kylian Mbappe before curling a fine strike into the top right corner with the most famed left foot in world soccer. The ecstatic crowd rose to their feet.
"I'm very happy to have scored. I've not been playing much recently and I'm adapting to my teammates little by little," Messi said through a translator.
"The more we play together the better it will become. We need to grow together and increase our level.
Messi netted an astounding 672 goals for Barcelona but it was his first for PSG in three starts and four games overall since a shock summer move from the Spanish club.
"The goal was fantastic," Guardiola said.
It was the kind he scored for fun playing under Guardiola at Barcelona. The pair won the Champions League in 2009 and 2011, with Messi scoring in both finals.
City had not lost its five previous meetings with PSG, winning 2-1 in Paris and 2-0 at home in last season's semifinals before losing to Chelsea in the final.
PSG started its dream attack of Messi, Neymar and Mbappe, but it was unheralded midfielder Idrissa Gueye who opened the scoring in the eighth minute.
The Senegal international thumped the ball into the top corner after Neymar's scuffed shot fell to him just inside the penalty area following Mbappe's cross from the right.
"I get a lot of scoring chances in this team, the forwards make a lot of runs so the second ball often drops to me inside and outside the penalty area," Gueye said. As midfielders, we are there to try and finish (chances).
City should have equalized in the 26th, but instead produced a contender for miss of the season.
Raheem Sterling's header from Kevin De Bruyne's cross hit the crossbar and the ball fell to winger Bernardo Silva less than two meters out. But Silva somehow scooped the ball onto the bar with goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma beaten.
Donnarumma and opposite number Ederson then made a smart save each in an even first half that De Bruyne was perhaps lucky to finish, receiving only a yellow card for a dangerous tackle on Gueye's shin.
Sterling dragged a shot wide early in the second half as City caught PSG's defense asleep down the left.
Donnarumma then kicked away De Bruyne's shot in the 54th as City exposed poor defending on the other flank as the Premier League champion took control.
"It was a good performance. We did everything but score," Guardiola said. We defended well, they defended deep and a counterattack from them is always dangerous.
PSG's glittering attack looked flat, as it did in a 1-1 draw against Club Brugge. Neymar shot into the side netting midway through the second half, with Mbappe in a better position.
Then Messi lit up Parc des Princes with a glimpse of things to come, at the stadium where he scored his last Champions League goal for Barcelona last season.
PSG tops Group A on goal difference and is level with Club Brugge with four points, while City is third with three points. Club Brugge won 2-1 at last-place Leipzig.
City is at Brugge, and 2020 Champions League runner-up PSG hosts Leipzig on Oct. 19. (AP)
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India & Israel elevate ties to special strategic partnership, vow to soon conclude free trade deal
Jerusalem (PTI): India and Israel on Thursday elevated their "time-tested" relationship to a special strategic partnership and agreed to soon firm up a "mutually beneficial" free trade deal even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly backed the Gaza peace initiative, asserting that humanity must never become a victim of conflict.
Following talks between Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, the two sides inked a plethora of agreements to expand cooperation in areas of trade, agriculture, energy, cyberspace and digital payment.
India and Israel also vowed to expand their already close defence partnership by working towards joint development and joint production of military hardware under the framework of the transfer of technologies.
In his media statement, Modi said India's security interest is linked to peace and stability in the Middle East, adding that New Delhi fully supports the Gaza Peace Initiative.
"India's stance is clear: humanity must never become a victim of conflict. A path to peace has been created through the Gaza Peace Plan. India has fully supported these efforts," he said.
"In the future as well, we will continue dialogue and cooperation with all countries," he said.
PM Modi landed in Israel on Wednesday on a two-day visit. It is his second visit to Israel in nine years.
In his remarks, the prime minister said India and Israel have a united view that there is no place for terrorism in the world and both sides stand shoulder-to-shoulder in countering terrorism and its supporters.
"Our relationship is founded on the strong bedrock of deep trust, shared democratic values, and human sensitivities. Our bond has stood the test of every trial of time," he said.
"Today, we have taken the historic decision to elevate our time-tested partnership to the status of a 'Special Strategic Partnership'," he said.
The prime minister also announced the establishment of an India-Israel critical and emerging technologies partnership to impart a new momentum for cooperation in areas of artificial intelligence, quantum, and critical minerals. "I am pleased that an agreement has been reached for the use of UPI in Israel," he said.
The prime minister, referring to the threat of terrorism, said India and Israel will continue to confront the menace unitedly.
"India and Israel are completely clear that there is no place for terrorism in the world. In any form, in any expression, terrorism cannot be accepted," he said.
"We have stood shoulder-to-shoulder in opposing terrorism and its supporters, and we will continue to do so," he added.
India and Israel also discussed the implementation of the India-Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and cooperation under the framework of I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-USA).
