Lionel Messi's apologies won't change anything

After his unsanctioned trip to Saudi Arabia on Monday, Lionel Messi was suspended by PSG with a two-week ban from playing without pay. Following Christophe Galtier's press conference on Friday, Messi uploaded a video to his personal account offering his apologies for what recently went down.

This marked the first time since the start of the week in which we've heard from Messi. “I thought we were going to have a day off after the match, as always. I had organized this trip and I could not cancel it. I had already canceled it before. I apologize to my teammates and I am waiting to know what the club wants to do with me."

On Monday, Messi found himself in hot water with PSG after he fulfilled his marketing contract with the Saudi Arabia tourist office instead of attending a scheduled training session at the Camp des Loges. This resulted in a two-week suspension for the Argentine player, further adding to the extra-sporting drama surrounding PSG this season.

Messi had traveled to Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, for his lucrative contract with the country's tourist office, unaware that a collective training session had been scheduled for the following day. PSG management subsequently suspended him for two weeks.

Messi later posted a video on social media in which he apologized for the situation, stating that he thought he had a day off after the match against Lorient as usual, and had already cancelled the trip once before. He expressed remorse to his teammates and awaited the club's decision.

According to RMC, Messi's apology was a "voluntary initiative on his part," and PSG played no role in it. While his apology was heard by PSG, it is unlikely to change his fate at the club, given that he is due to leave at the end of his contract.

Messi is also expected to face a financial penalty, with RMC reporting that he will not receive his ethics bonus, which is said to be a substantial amount.

Just for context, though, it is believed that the contract that links Messi to the Middle Eastern country as a tourism ambassador of Saudi Arabia pays him north of €30m, so it's not that he won't be filling his bags anyway.

Good for PSG, though, the Messi Nightmare will be over in just a little over a month. What a relief.