Lionel Messi: Cesc Fabregas praises PSG star for pass to Kylian Mbappe vs Real Madrid

Lionel Messi hasn’t exactly found life plain sailing at Paris Saint-Germain.

While claims that the Barcelona icon has flopped are undoubtedly hyperbolic – lest we forget that he’s still notched 15 goal contributions – there’s no denying that Messi hasn’t been playing his best football.

And Messi’s recent performance in the 1-0 Champions League win over Real Madrid became a particularly fierce talking point with the 34-year-old having gone viral for missing a crucial penalty.

The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner spurned the chance to give PSG the lead when Thibaut Courtois thwarted his effort from 12 yards, before Kylian Mbappe eventually saved the day with a stoppage-time winner.

Not only was the social media reaction typically scathing, but French publication L’Equipe merely fanned the flames by slapping Messi with a 3/10 rating for a performance deemed to be “sad” and “worrying.”

However, Messi’s display against his old La Liga rivals wasn’t as bad as some have made it out to be with Cesc Fabregas just one of the key figures coming to the Argentine’s defence.

That’s because Messi’s former Barcelona teammate gave an impassioned defence of the PSG forward’s performance, even going as far as naming a specific example where he showed his class during the game.

The ex-Arsenal and Chelsea midfielder made a point of mentioning Messi’s stunning first-half pass to Mbappe, which he believes nobody else on the pitch could have pulled off, in an interview with Mundo Deportivo.

According to a translation by Goal, Fabregas remarked: “I have read things from people who must not have seen him play against Real Madrid. Without being stellar, he played a good game.

“He put Mbappe through on goal in the first half with a pass that none of