Barcelona would be without star player Lionel Messi for the Champions League trip to Ukrainian club Dynamo Kyiv in Group G after manager Ronald Koeman decided to rest him with the Catalans in a strong position in their group. Barcelona are one of the four clubs with a perfect record in the group stage of the competition this season.
The decision to rest Messi for the gruelling trip to Kyiv in Ukraine was conveyed to reporters by Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman during his pre-match press conference on Monday ahead of the game on Tuesday night. The former Barcelona midfielder also confirmed that Dutch international midfielder Frenkie de Jong will also be rested for the game.
According to Ronald Koeman, Lionel Messi and Frenkie de Jong have played a lot of games recently and the Dynamo Kyiv game is a perfect platform to give the two players a much-deserved rest.
Messi has struggled to overcome the emotions of the summer after he asked for his exit. The Argentine was said to be frustrated with the lack of ambition from the club and this played a major role in his decision to want to leave the club he has played for throughout his career. In the end, Barcelona were not ready to cancel the last year of his contract for him to move to another team.
The six-time Ballon d'Or Award winner has struggled to reach the lofty heights expected of him though he has still scored some important goals for Barcelona. He has six goals in 11 matches this season including three goals in three games. Lionel Messi has scored in each of his three games in the Champions League this season.
Apart from Messi and De Jong, Barcelona will also be without Gerard Pique after the Spanish defender sustained a serious knee injury during the weekend’s league game at Atletico Madrid. Pique is not expected to play again this year.