Barcelona captain Lionel Messi has been playing with a thigh injury for the club in recent weeks, according to ESPN.
It is claimed by the report that club officials are aware of the situation and know that while the Argentine can not operate his full fitness or power due to the injury, he is fit enough to be involved.
The report also adds that whilst there is an acceptance that player knows his own body and there is no resistance to him playing, the situation needs to be managed carefully so that the injury does not worsen.
Messi played a part in all five goals in last week’s Copa del Rey victory over Leganes while he also provided the assist for both of Ansu Fati’s strikes in the weekend’s 2-1 victory at home to Levante in La Liga.
It is said the training regime under new Coach Quique Setien is more intense than that of his predecessor Ernesto Valverde and that has caused the pain to worsen.
Messi is still operating at an extremely high level while Barcelona are short of attackers – Luis Suarez may miss the rest of the campaign while Ousmane Dembele has suffered from a number of recurring hamstring problems, with Carles Perez and Abel Ruiz sold last week.
