Lionel Messi 'doesn't know if he'll be fit for El Clasico', says star's brother

Lionel Messi’s brother has confirmed the Barcelona forward doesn’t yet know if he’ll be fit to play Real Madrid on November 22.

Messi suffered torn knee ligaments in Saturday’s win over Las Palmas and an absence of two months has been mooted, Rodrigo Messi telling Onda Cero that his sibling’s involvement remains questionable.

“There’s pressure to recover quickly. He doesn’t know whether or not he’ll be involved in El Clasico,” he is quoted as saying by Marca.

“He was frightened at first but once he left the clinic, he was relaxed. His body will decide [if Messi can play against Madrid].

“It hurts Leo not to be able to play for Argentina. He loves that shirt and his country and feels it a lot.

“The future at Barca? When he or anyone else is comfortable with their club, as in any job, you’d retire there, but you never know.

“It’s a shame [this injury] has happened to my brother but in football you’re going to go through the good and the bad. Now we have to endure and pray to God."

Messi himself posted a message to fans via Facebook thanking fans for their support and admitting that "the hardest thing is not being on the pitch".

Rodrigo added that his brother is indeed feeling gloomy about not playing.

“I saw him the day he was injured and he was pretty miserable and down," Rodrigo said.

"He likes playing and was thinking about the games he was going to miss. Once he had some rest he was better about things.

“Once he went through tests in the clinic and saw that it wasn’t a serious injury, he was reassured.

“Leo is a guy who knows how he is, he’s an excellent professional and will know how to adapt to any circumstances. Sure, there’ll be pressure to recover quickly but he knows what to do.

“We don’t think about if someone is happy about this injury, we focus on ourselves. We don’t think about or listen to others.

“It hasn’t crossed his mind that he might lose the Ballon d’Or for being out. Leo isn’t thinking that far ahead.

“Relationship with Neymar? When two players understand each other chemistry comes quickly. Messi and Neymar seem like they know everything.”

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