Julian Draxler: Rise and Fall of Paris Saint Germain Star Once Considered Hot Prospect

• Newcastle United have approached Paris Saint-Germain over the possible signing of Julian Draxler
• Draxler was one of the most-promising prospects during his teen years, but his career failed to take off after success with the German national team
• Competition at PSG is always rife with all the big names like Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar, guaranteed starters

At the start of his career, Julian Draxler's name was always mentioned in the same breath as the rising stars of his generation like Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and Neymar.

He was once considered as one of the outside favourites to one day replicate Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's successes in football.

Draxler started off at Shalke 04, where he made his debut at the tender age of 17 years. At that time, he was the fourth youngest player to play an official match in the Bundesliga. He later went on to record 19 goal contributions in his first season.

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He was part of the German squad that won the FIFA World Cup in 2014 under Joachim Loew.

He stayed with the Royal Blues until the summer of 2015, when he completed a high-profile move to Wolfsburg. He only lasted one and a half seasons at Wolfsburg, bagging only five goals in 34 appearances.

Joining PSG in 2017 and rediscovering his form

Draxler then signed for PSG in January 2017, where he was able to revive his form under the then-manager Unai Emery. He capped off a wonderful season by leading Germany to the Confederations Cup triumph. He was also named the player of the tournament.

But afterwards, Draxler's fortunes dwindled with the signing of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, who wasted no time in taking their places in the PSG squad. Draxler was now relegated to part-time appearances from the bench.

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Draxler opted to renew his PSG contract to 2024

The attacking midfielder had some semblance of hope when Mauricio Pochettino was appointed as the head coach. Pochettino accorded the German international some minutes to the extent that he chose to renew his contract.

But he was pushed back to square one when Lionel Messi joined the club on a free transfer. French Football News now reports that Newcastle have made an enquiry about signing him.

At just 28 years, Draxler still has a couple of more seasons to turn around his once-promising career. Whether he takes up the Newcastle offer or not, he will also be thinking about a possible call-up to Hansi Flick's side in November for the Qatar World Cup.

Footage of Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe's linkup in training excites fans

Legit.ng had earlier reported that Paris Saint-Germain fans have expressed renewed hope in their team's chances of competing for major honours in the upcoming season after video footage showed two of the top stars linking wonderfully in training.

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A video doing rounds on social media spotted by Legit.ng shows Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe skipping challenges, exchanging intricate passes before Messi finally scores.

Parisians will be looking to the duo and Neymar to lead them to the elusive Champions League glory. Messi joined PSG last summer after failing to renew his contract with Barcelona.

Source: Legit.ng