It’s all but confirmed: Lionel Messi will play in Saturday’s Clásico at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Luis Súarez told the press that “if he [Messi] plays or not is the decision for the coach and for him. He is training with us and the feelings are very positive, but we must wait. It is an injury that can have risks for the future.”
“We do not know if Leo would play from the start or be on the bench,” he went on. Damn, a pretty big jump from two weeks ago, when it seemed all but certain that Messi would miss the big match. “It depends on how things go.”
“He can change everything at any moment. But he has been two months without playing.” Luisito, is that a subtle crack at the fact that you’ve been killing it in your superstar teammate’s absence?
Sergio Ramos also looks set to feature after receiving pain-killing injections in his shoulder. When asked about his opponent, Suárez wasn’t baited, and stated that he would “not look for Sergio’s shoulder, just as nobody will seek out Messi’s leg. We are colleagues.”
We’re three days out and the hype only continues to grow. We’ll be debating injury questions until kickoff, but for now it looks like Messi will play a role – and maybe a big one – in the derby.