WATCH: PSG officially unveils Messi; six-time Ballon d’Or winner promises to help club win Champions League

Argentine superstar Lionel Messi was officially unveiled today as French club Paris St Germain player at a press conference attended by club Chairman and CEO Nasser Al Khelaifi in Paris.

The Argentine captain, who arrived in Paris on Tuesday, had signed a two-year deal, reportedly worth nearly £30 million per annum, with an option for a third with the Qatar-owned club.

"The reception from the people of Paris has been amazing. I will try to live up to your expectations," said Messi, who felt "incredible happiness" at joining a team that he believes can help him win his fifth Champions League and his first since 2015. Asked, in particular, about playing with Neymar and Mbappé, he replied, "It's madness to be able to work with such great players daily," adding that his admiration was not confined to those new teammates, since Sergio Ramos, Georginio Wijnaldum, Achraf Hakimi and Gianluigi Donnarumma have also joined this summer.

Messi, who has enjoyed a spectacular year so far and clinching the hitherto elusive Copa American trophy for Argentina last month, expressed his desire to help PSG win the much-coveted UEFA Champions League as soon as possible.

"That's why I am here. It's an ambitious club," Messi, who will wear the No. 30 jersey – which was his first squad number in senior football at Barcelona in 2006, told the news conference.

"You can see they're ready to fight for everything. My dream is to win another Champions League, and I think this is the ideal place to be to do that."

The No. 30 jersey was reported to have sold out within 30 minutes of its unveiling - a clear indication of the fact that PSG's investment has started yielding the desired results even before the world's best player kicked a ball for the French leaders.

The PSG deal ends almost a week-long drama between the six-time Ballon d'Or winner and his former club FC Barcelona. The Argentine forward had agreed to stay at the Catalan Club after his deal expired at the end of June, only for the club to admit they could no longer afford him last week.

Messi noted that PSG had made spectacular signings on top of the players that were already there.

"I'm eager to get playing, and I'm going to be doing it alongside some of the best players in the world. It's going to be a marvelous experience every day. I hope I can continue to win titles. I have the same hunger as when I was younger."

The 34-year-old forward said he was not sure when he would be ready to play, explaining, "I have been inactive for the last month, so I basically have to do a pre-season by myself. I'm coming back from holiday. I need a bit of a pre-season and get myself going. Hopefully, debuting can be soon, but I can't give you a date. It's up to the coaches."

PSG's president, Nasser al-Khelaifi, who was sat alongside Messi, said that the player's arrival should help convince Mbappé to pledge his future to the club. The Frenchman has resisted attempts to secure him to a new contract, with his deal expiring next year. Khelaifi said he expected Mbappé to stay because "now he has no excuse to do anything else".

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Khelaifi also said Messi's arrival would generate enormous revenue for PSG, suggesting those benefits would help the club to comply with financial fair play regulations.

Asked how the club could afford to hire Messi on an annual wage of nearly £30m for at least the next two years, Khelaifi thanked the journalist for asking "a very great question" before replying, "We have always followed FFP regulations from day one and we always will. Before doing anything strategically, we look with our commercial, financial and legal people.

"We said if we have the capacity to sign him, we will do it. If not, we're not going to sign him. What Leo is bringing to the club is huge and what the media have to focus on is not only the negative side but also there are a lot of positives Leo is bringing in terms of commercial and social media. He's a big asset to the club. It's been an unbelievable three days [since reports of Messi's arrival emerged]. If we give you some numbers, you are going to be shocked." He added with a chuckle: "I hope Leo will not ask for more salary now … but we will always follow FFP regulations."

From a commercial perspective, PSG's signing of Messi is one of the best deals in football, considering what the player brings to the table. The club has had a strategic and very successful transfer window as Messi joined the Parisians on a free transfer.

To put this in context, Manchester City offered almost €600 million in a four-year deal just a year ago.

According to an analysis by Virgile Caillet, the general delegate at Union Sport and Cycle, the arrival of Messi, regarded by many as the world's best player, would further strengthen the club's global appeal.

"In terms of contract negotiations, such an event can quickly lead to a 20-30 percent increase in new sponsorship deals for the club. When it comes to merchandising, the club can expect to achieve a 10-20 percent increase in sales of merchandise and shirts," Caillet told News Tank Football.

"A new Messi shirt would easily generate between 300,000 and 400,000 additional shirts sold per year. Over two years, these additional revenues could quickly absorb the arrival of Messi. Lionel Messi is one of the best players of all time. He brings with him unique economic benefits. Messi enabled Barcelona to generate between €60m and €80m in turnover per year," he added.

PSG will be up against Strasbourg in their Ligue 1 opener on Friday, but as much as Messi and the fans might like it, it's unlikely the former Barcelona player would start for at least two to three weeks.

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Cover Image Credit: Twitter/@PSG