Lionel Messi welcomed back to PSG training with brilliant gesture

Paris Saint-Germain players formed a guard of honour for Lionel Messi on his first day back in training after winning the World Cup.

Messi's Argentina triumphed in one of the all-time great finals against France, who had Kylian Mbappe to thank for scoring a hat-trick and sending the match all the way to penalties.

PSG teammates Messi and Mbappe both converted their spot kicks, but Kingsley Coman and Aurelien Tchouameni's misses for Les Bleus ensured La Albiceleste were victorious in Qatar.

After being granted an extended period of time off to celebrate and recover, Messi returned to PSG's Camp des Loges training complex on Wednesday.

He was greeted with a guard of honour by players and staff as he took to the pitches, receiving a small trophy from sporting advisor Luis Campos in honour of his achievements this winter.

PSG have struggled without Messi since returning to Ligue 1 action, limping to a last-gasp 2-1 win at home to Strasbourg before losing 3-1 at title rivals Lens.

They travel to Chateauroux in the Coupe de France on Friday before hosting Angers back in Ligue 1 next Wednesday.

Messi is currently joint-ninth in the Ligue 1 scoring charts with seven goals, while he is level with Neymar atop the assists leaderboard with ten.