Pochettino explains why he substituted Messi Off At 75th Minute

There was some confusion at the Parc des Princes, including from Lionel Messi himself when Mauricio Pochettino decided to take off the Argentine in the 75th minute of Paris Saint-Germain’s 2-1 victory over Lyon.

At that point, PSG was drawing 1-1 with their domestic rivals, making it odd that they’d take off their summer signing.

After the match, Pochettino explained why he and his coaching staff made that decision.

“We made the decision to take Messi off because of a possible future injury,” he stated.

“We have important matches coming up and we have to protect him.

“These are decisions made for the team and everyone knows we have many great players. We have to take these decisions.

“Sometimes they might be viewed favorably, sometimes a little less.”