Lionel Messi beats Cristiano Ronaldo to landmark as Man Utd lose club record

Lionel Messi's high-profile summer transfer from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain last summer has not entirely gone to plan off the pitch but he has generated a new record.

PSG sold over one million shirts for the first time last season with 'Messi 30' accounting for over 60 per cent of that figure, which is the record for any player. It means the Argentine's shirt sales surpassed that of Cristiano Ronaldo – who returned to Manchester United last summer from Juventus – and that the English giants are no longer the club that sells the most replica shirts.

Almost €1million was generated in shirt sales alone in the hours following confirmation that Messi had joined the French club and would wear the number 30 shirts. The arrival of Messi also saw the club move its official store to the Champs-Elysees to double its surface area and increase its income from lifestyle products as well with its Jordan Brand also helping to drive sales.

PSG president Nasser Al Khelaifi told Marca earlier this week when explaining that the arrival of the Argentine actually generated funds for the club: "If we make a signing, it is because we can. Look at the case of Messi. It was the same, they said it was financially impossible and we have made money with Messi."

Marc Armstrong, Chief Partnerships Officer at Paris Saint-Germain, is quoted by Marca as saying: "Demand has grown by 30 to 40 per cent and really what can slow it down is supply. When a signing of this size happens, [Cristiano] Ronaldo to [Manchester] United for example, you might think he's going to get paid by selling shirts, but that's not the case. You can't produce a lot of extra shirts.

"The agreement is set to guarantee very important minimums but we can't meet the