Lionel Messi back for Barcelona's Betis clash and with ‘no fear’ after arm fracture

Back in action | Lionel Messi
AFP/Getty Images/Miguel Medina
Ben Hayward11 November 2018

Lionel Messi is in the squad for Barcelona’s La Liga game at home to Betis on Sunday , having missed the club's last five games through injury.

The Argentine attacker suffered an arm fracture in last month's 4-2 win at home to Sevilla and later that evening, the Catalan club said in a statement that he would likely be sidelined for a period of three weeks.

Messi travelled to Italy with the rest of the Barcelona squad for the Champions League clash against Inter Milan on Tuesday, but was left out of the final matchday squad after training at San Siro on Monday.

However, he is back for Sunday’s La Liga clash against Betis at Camp Nou, which will take place exactly three weeks and a day after his original injury.

“We will see tomorrow if he plays or not,” Valverde said in his pre-match press conference on Saturday.

“He has lost the fear of falling, leaning on it, or forcing it, and that’s the main thing. That’s what you have to get out of your head because that is what limits you.

“He looks really good to me and he feels confident.”

In Messi's absence, Barca have beaten Real Madrid (5-1) and Rayo Vallecano (3-2) in La Liga, with a 2-0 win at home to Inter in the Champions League, a 1-1 draw to the Italians at San Siro and a 1-0 victory over Cultural Leonesa in the Copa del Rey.

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