Messi prepares for Cádiz game before Barça teammates
The Argentine, along with Marc-André ter Stegen and Philippe Coutinho, trained in Barcelona ahead of the league game against Cádiz on Saturday.
While Barcelona players were doing their the morning stretching in Budapest, preparing for the match against Ferencváros on Wednesday night, Lionel Messi trained at the Ciutat Esportiva following the specific plan that he agreed with Ronald Koeman to take advantage of the week and prepare for the game against Cádiz at the weekend.
Messi, who was rested and didn't travel to Kiev, trained alongside Coutinho and Ter Stegen, who were also given extra rest time by Koeman. The German is not long back from an injury to his right knee and the club felt a short break ahead of some important fixtures was the right move to take. Coutinho, who picked up an injury in the El Clásico defeat to Real Madrid and had almost a month of recovery, has also stayed back in Barcelona.
French defender Samuel Umtiti has been called to play for Barça B in a bid to regain some match fitness after a lengthly spell on the sidelines with an injury to his left knee.
Barcelona have already qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League and can seal top spot in Group G against Ferencváros if the result between Juventus and Dynamo Kyiv in the evening’s other clash goes their way.
Barça, who have collected 12 points from 12 so far in the group stage, will be guaranteed first place if they defeat the Hungarian champions and Juve fail to beat Kyiv, or if they draw and the Italians lose.