Betis do not want Messi to ‘hurry’ recovery

Barcelona started La Liga on the wrong foot losing to Athletic Bilbao in the opening fixture of the league. Barca were without talismanic captain Lionel Messi in that game but the Argentine gave the defending champions a timely boost on Wednesday by returning to training with the rest of the squad after a calf injury. Barca’s next opponent in the league is Real Betis and the Spanish club comically advised Messi not to hurry up his recovery.

Messi trained alone in the morning before joining his team-mates in the afternoon, increasing hopes that Barca's captain could play a role against Real Betis in La Liga on Sunday. With Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele already out through injury, Barca will be desperate to have Messi in their ranks against Betis.

When Barcelona’s twitter account posted an image of Messi training with the group, Betis replied: Don’t hurry Leo, you don’t have to force it!

The tweet was accompanied by a few emojis such as the goat symbol and stop gesture for good measure. The Barca number 10 is the top goal-scorer in La Liga for the past three season and Betis will be hoping Messi does not have a good outing against them on Sunday.