Barcelona vs Real Madrid team news: Lionel Messi starts on bench due to injury

Tom Kershaw
Wednesday 06 February 2019 15:00 EST
Comments
Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde discusses Lionel Messi involvement in Real Madrid clash

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Lionel Messi will start on the bench for Barcelona against Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey semi-final first-leg.

The Argentine had been a serious doubt for the fixture after suffering a thigh strain in the Catalans' 2-2 draw with Valencia on the weekend, with Barca boss Ernesto Valverde saying the club "would wait until the last moment" to decide if Messi would play.

Malcom stars in midfield while Ousmane Dembele misses out as the Frenchman continues to recover from a hamstring injury.

Eighteen-year-old Brazilian starlet Vinicius Jr starts Real Madrid while Marcos Llorente has been brought in ahead of Casemiro to man-mark Lionel Messi.

Barcelona XI

Ter Stegen, Semedo, Piqué, Lenglet, Alba, Busquets, Rakitic, Arthur, Malcom, Coutinho, Suárez

Real Madrid XI

Keylor Navas; Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Marcos Llorente, Kroos, Modric; Lucas Vázquez, Benzema, Vinicius

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in