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Paris Saint-Germain's Argentine forward Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring a goal during the French Ligue 1 match against Nice at the Allianz Riviera stadium in Nice. Image Credit: AFP

Dubai: Lionel Messi has achieved yet another milestone in his illustrious career as he notched up 1,000 club goal contributions with an assist for Paris Saint Germain against Nice on Saturday night.

Messi scored a goal and assisted another to help PSG secure a 2-0 victory in the Ligue 1 clash. Interestingly, it was his assist for the second goal that marked his 1,000th club career goal contribution. The recipient of his pass was none other than his long-time rival Sergio Ramos. Ramos was previously at Real Madrid and when Messi played for Barcelona the pair had some tasty encounters but they have been teammates at PSG for the last two years.

Top form

Although Messi struggled initially after moving to France, he has been displaying his top form lately. This season, he has registered 19 goals and 18 assists across all competitions, aiding PSG’s efforts to retain their title.

However, it’s his performances for Barcelona that have contributed the most to his incredible statistics. During his time at the Blaugrana, he scored a whopping 672 goals, setting a record for the most goals scored by a player for a single club. Additionally, in 2012, he achieved another incredible feat by scoring 91 goals, which remains the highest number of goals any player has scored in a calendar year.

Nine points

Next up, PSG are scheduled to face Lens in Ligue 1, and a win would help them extend their lead by nine points over their second-placed opponents.

As for Messi’s future, reports suggest that he is likely to leave PSG this summer and make a return to Barcelona, where he became a footballing legend. He has also been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia club Al Hilal and many would love to see that happen so he can rekindle his rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo who plays for Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League. But Inter Milan are also keen on the 35-year-old Argentinian World Cup but Barca seems his most likely destination.