Mauricio Pochettino is facing a battle to find balance in his Paris Saint-Germain side and Lionel Messi's position is at the heart of that struggle, according to reports in France.
The Ligue 1 giants remain seven points clear at the top of the table having escaped from Le Classique against Marseille on Sunday with a draw following Achraf Hakimi's dismissal.
But despite their league position and their return of seven points from three Champions League group games this season - including a 2-0 win against Manchester City - L'Equipe claim the work is only piling up for the Argentine boss.
Mauricio Pochettino is facing a battle to find balance in his Paris Saint-Germain side
The main issue surrounds the position of Lionel Messi, who played on the right at Marseille
They claim PSG's progress under the ex-Tottenham manager after 10 months in the job has been slow, with Pochettino struggling to find a style of play given their problems of offensive efficiency combined with a worrying fragility defensively.
The report claims Pochettino's daring decision of starting Messi, Neymar and Angel Di Maria behind Kylian Mbappe in a 4-2-3-1 formation against Rennes, Lyon and Marseille 'has revealed flaws' at both ends of the field.
The main issue surrounds where Pochettino should play Lionel Messi, with the latter having operated from the right-hand side against Marseille on Sunday.
But the attacking formation - which saw Neymar play centrally in the three behind Mbappe - delivered 'at best, very contrasting' results.
L'Equipe claim that the bold decision to play Messi, Kylian Mbappe (L), Neymar (centre) and Angel Di Maria (not pictured) has revealed flaws
This is because while playing on the right allows Messi to cut in on his left foot and develop his 'natural' relationship with Mbappe, the report claims the ex-Barcelona star is ineffective out wide due to the lack of space afforded to him.
They suggest
