Lionel Messi means business this season.
Let's be honest, Messi didn't enjoy the most spectacular of debut years at Paris Saint-Germain, remarkably failing to make the list of Ballon d'Or nominees having notched six goals in Ligue 1.
However, when you're talking about arguably the greatest sportsperson to have ever lived, you just know that they're going to bounce back from a tough year at the office - and boy is Messi doing exactly that.
Messi's superb start to 2022/23
In fact, the Barcelona legend is just three games into the French top-flight season and he's already amassed half the amount of goals that he mustered across 26 outings in the competition last time out.
But it's more than just the goals that have shimmered across Messi's first four games this season because frankly, every aspect of his game seems to have been fine-tuned back to the levels we saw from him latterly in Catalonia.
The 37-year-old seems well and truly plugged in to the Neymar and Kylian Mbappe dynamic, continues to blow everyone away with his creative brilliance and is never more than a few minutes away from humiliating an opponent.
Arteta OUT ATTACK! Aubameyang to COMPLETE | Fofana REJECTION! Man United are BACK! (Football Terrace)
And while, yes, it is of course still early days in the campaign, the evidence so far would suggest that Messi could be right back in the Ballon d'Or hunt by the time that 2023 rolls around.
Messi thriving in the stats
Don't believe us? Well, the proof is in the pudding because Messi is currently ranked by statistics as the second-best player across Europe's top five leagues this season, according to WhoScored.
The popular data gurus use a series of metrics to award every player in those divisions a rating out of 10 for each game they play, which can then be averaged out across their performances in a season.
That, in turn, means that players hold onto an overall rating across the season that brings fans about as close as possible to a reality where footballers can be legitimately compared objectively.
And well, the data for the 2022/23 season so far speaks for itself with Messi already flexing his muscles as the second-highest rated player on the continent.
Europe's top 30 players so far
So, be sure to check out which player managed to get the better of the PSG ace and which top performers are snapping at his heels by checking out Europe's statistical top 30 stars so far this season:
30. Nuno Tavares (Marseille) - 7.69
Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Brest v Olympique de Marseille - Stade Francis-Le Ble, Brest, France - August 14, 2022 Olympique de Marseille's Nuno Tavares celebrates scoring their first goal REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
29. Matz Sels (Strasbourg) - 7.73
28. Florian Tardieu (Troyes) - 7.74
27. Theoson Siebatcheu (Union Berlin) - 7.74
26. Yvon Mvogo (Lorient) - 7.76
25. Wladimiro Falcone (Lecce) - 7.76
REGGIO NELL'EMILIA, ITALY - AUGUST 20: Wladimiro Falcone of US Lecce in action during the Serie A match between US Sassuolo and US Lecce at Mapei Stadium - Citta' del Tricolore on August 20, 2022 in Reggio nell'Emilia, . (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)
24. Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain) - 7.76
23. Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal) - 7.77
22. Geronimo Rulli (Villarreal) - 7.78
21. Ismael Bennacer (AC Milan) - 7.83
20. Dean Henderson (Nottingham Forest) - 7.83
Soccer Football - Pre Season Friendly - Burton Albion v Nottingham Forest - Pirelli Stadium, Burton-on-Trent, Britain - July 12, 2022 Nottingham Forest's Dean Henderson Action Images via Reuters/Ed Sykes
19. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Napoli) - 7.85
18. Bartlomiej Dragowski (Spezia) - 7.86
17. Remy Cabella (Lille) - 7.87
16. Lorenzo Pellegrini (AS Roma) - 7.88
15. Jonathan David (Lille) - 7.88
LILLE, FRANCE - MARCH 16: Jonathan David of Lille OSC during the UEFA Champions League Round Of Sixteen Leg Two match between Lille OSC and Chelsea FC at Stade Pierre-Mauroy on March 16, 2022 in Lille, France. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
14. Teji Savanier (Montpellier) - 7.95
13. Jack Harrison (Leeds United) - 7.95
12. Piotr Zielinski (Napoli) - 7.98
11. Michael Gregoritsch (Freiburg) - 8.03
10. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) - 8.09
Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v AFC Bournemouth - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - August 13, 2022 Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Braut Haaland during the warm up before the match Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club /league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
9. Tete (Lyon) - 8.20
8. Fernando Martinez (Almeria) - 8.20
7. Ionut Radu (Cremonese) - 8.25
6. Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich) - 8.39
5. Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain) - 8.59
Soccer Football - Pre Season Friendly - Urawa Red Diamonds v Paris Saint-Germain - Saitama Stadium, Saitama, Japan - July 23, 2022 Paris St Germain's Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Issei Kato
4. Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich) - 8.65
3. Armand Lauriente (Lorient) - 8.68
2. Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain) - 8.71
- Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain) - 9.53
Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Lille v Paris St Germain - Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France - August 21, 2022 Paris St Germain's Neymar after the match REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol
Menacing stuff from PSG
Yup, Messi has been pretty outrageous so far this season, but Neymar is playing football from another planet as he boasts a barely comprehensible five goals and six assists from his first three games.
And with Mbappe also swaggering his way into the top five, you'd be forgiven for thinking that PSG's star-studded XI might finally have clicked now that Christophe Galtier is pulling the strings.
Balling out in Ligue 1 is one thing and tearing up the Champions League is another, but everyone from Lorient to Liverpool has got to be quaking in the boots at the sight of Messi, Mbappe and Neymar's form.
However, even in a world where PSG do self-destruct on the European stage all over again, it's just nice to see Messi playing with the joy and vibrancy that we were so used to him delivering at Camp Nou.
Stats show he's currently the second best in the business right now, but don't be surprised given Messi's talents if he's ranked as the number one by both the data and fans when May rolls around.