The six-time Ballon d’Or winner’s wait for his first Ligue 1 goal goes on after an ineffective display at Stade Velodrome

Lionel Messi has made his worst start to a league season in 16 years after Paris Saint-Germain’s 0-0 draw with Marseille, which also saw a pitch invader ruin a promising attack led by the Argentine forward.

PSG dropped points in Ligue 1 for only the second time this season after a stalemate at Stade Velodrome on Sunday, with Messi drawing a blank in his fourth domestic appearance for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

The 34-year-old, who moved to Parc des Princes on a free transfer after leaving Barcelona in the summer, has now fallen below the standard he set for well over a decade at Camp Nou, having been handed his third start for PSG against Marseille alongside fellow superstars Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.

Messi’s frustration

Messi has failed to score in the opening four games of a league campaign for the first time since 2005-06, when it took him six matches to open his account for Barca.

The six-time Ballon d’Or winner was also guilty of losing possession 16 times in the match, and will now have to wait until a meeting with reigning French champions Lille on Friday for the next chance to break his duck.

Pitch invader compounds woes

PSG’s latest clash with Marseille was marred by crowd trouble, with play stopped on two occasions as Neymar was forced to dodge bottles being thrown from the stands while taking a corner.

Messi was also targeted at the worst possible time too, as a pitch invader gained access to the pitch before stopping the Argentina international as he dribbled towards Marseille’s penalty area with 18 minutes left to play.

Both sides also had goals chalked off by VAR, and PSG played most of the second half with ten men after Achraf Hakimi was shown a red card for a professional foul.