Barcelona vs. Paris Saint-Germain, 2013 UEFA Champions League: Lionel Messi not in starting lineup
Lionel Messi hasn’t cracked the Barcelona starting XI to face Paris Saint-Germain, but he is on the bench. The Blaugrana forward injured his hamstring in the first leg of the tie.
Lionel Messi has returned to the Barcelona team after training yesterday, but as expected, he is only on the bench. Messi injured his hamstring in the first leg of Barca's UEFA Champions League quarterfinal tie against Paris Saint-Germain and exited the game at halftime. He sat out over the weekend as well, but could come off the bench if things go less smoothly than expected for the Blaugrana, and they're in need of a late goal.
Cesc Fabregas should take Messi's place at center forward, but that's not certain, since the defense is a bit of a mystery. Three fullbacks have been picked, and one of those -- Adriano -- has played multiple positions throughout his Barcelona career. He could be a wide forward, pushing Fabregas into midfield and Busquets into defense, but the most likely scenario sees him deputizing for injured center backs Carles Puyol and Javier Mascherano. Carlo Ancelotti has opted to go to Marco Verratti ahead of David Beckham and Clement Chantome in the PSG lineup. Thiago Motta is back in the team as well after returning from injury.
Barcelona lineup (4-3-3): Victor Valdes; Jordi Alba, Gerard Pique, Adriano, Dani Alves; Sergio Busquets, Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta; David Villa, Cesc Fabregas, Pedro Rodriguez
Paris Saint-Germain lineup (4-2-3-1): Salvatore Sirigu; Maxwell, Thiago Silva, Alex, Cristophe Jallet; Thiago Motta, Marco Verratti; Ezequiel Lavezzi, Javier Pastore, Lucas Moura; Zlatan Ibrahimovic
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