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Barcelona captain Lionel Messi was back in training on Friday at the Ciutat Esportiva and looked razor-sharp despite a brief injury lay-off over the Christmas period.
The Argentina international missed Barcelona’s draw with Eibar on December 29 after undergoing treatment on an ankle problem. However, he was back at the club on Friday for the club’s first training session of 2021.
Messi certainly showed no signs of rust back out on the training ground as Barcelona started preparations for the club’s first game of the new year on Sunday at Huesca.
The captain’s appearance at the session suggests he will be included in the squad to travel to Huesca. The 33-year-old could also start the game at the Estadio El Alcoraz as Barca go in search of their first points of 2021.
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Messi Return Eases Barcelona’s Injury Problems
Coach Ronald Koeman will be glad to have Messi back given his team are already without injured stars such as Gerard Pique, Ansu Fati, and Sergi Roberto for the trip to the Basque country.
Philippe Coutinho will also miss out as he is due to undergo knee surgery on Saturday which is likely to see the Brazilian sidelined for a considerable spell. The 28-year-old could be out for up to four months, according to Javier Miguel at AS.
Messi is Barca’s top scorer this season with 10 goals in all competitions. It would be little surprise to see the captain add to his tally against Huesca who are currently bottom of the table in La Liga.
Messi Free to Talk to Other Clubs
There is plenty of speculation about Messi and his future going into 2021. The captain is into the final six months of his contract at the Camp Nou which means he is able to discuss a pre-contract with other clubs.
Messi told Barca he wanted to leave last summer, and clubs such as Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City, and Inter are all keen on landing the Argentina international, according to Goal.
Yet Messi told La Sexta’s Jordi Evole in a recent interview that he was not interested in talking about his future until the end of the season, as reported by Sky Sports.
Nothing will be crystal clear before the end of the year. I’ll wait until the season is over. What matters now is thinking about the team, finishing the year well and not being distracted by other things.
I don’t know what will happen. I’m focused on what we have here and battling for whatever we can. I’m not thinking about how the year will end. As of today, it wouldn’t be wise for me to say what I’m going to do because I don’t know.
It’s still not clear if Messi will stay at Barcelona or head for pastures new when his contract expires in the summer. Barca’s form over the next few months and the outcome of January’s presidential elections are both likely to play a key role in Messi’s thoughts about his future.
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