In an unexpected announcement, both Lionel Messi and Zlatan Ibrahimovic were announced to have recovered from their respective injuries and played 45 minutes in a friendly against Manchester City, a match for pre-season trophy, the Gamper Cup.
Messi has said to have recovered from an injury to his left leg that had kept him out of a 2-1 Spanish Supercup first leg victory over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday and an Argentina friendly last week. It remains unclear if he will still miss Barcelona’s La Liga opener against Sporting Gijon. Ibrahimovic, is also now ready to make his debut with the kings of Europe after recovering from surgery on a broken bone in his left hand.
Barcelona lost this game 0-1, through a first half strike by Martin Petrov. Lionel Messi showed his class in the 45 minutes he was given in the second half, and was undoubtedly the stand-out player on the pitch. His best moment came in stoppage time, when he skipped round Stephen Ireland before shooting against the post from 20 yards.
