Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde has named a 19-man squad for the Spanish La Liga opener against Athletic Bilbao on Friday night.
Ernesto Valverde and his Barcelona players travel to San Mames to take on Atheltic Bilbao in what’s the first game of the new Spanish La Liga season.
The big news is that Barcelona will be without the services of skipper and talisman Lionel Messi.
The petite Argentine superstar will miss the game after sustaining a thigh injury in training.
- Man Utd Target Transfer Saga To End In 44 Hours
- Man Utd In Last-ditch £95m Bid To Sign Barcelona-bound Player
- Unai Emery Speaks On These Two Players Playing Against Burnley
The injury ensured that Messi missed the final preseason games against Napoli including the final match which ended in a 4-0 win over the Italian Serie A giants.
Barcelona got their goals through the trio of Antoine Griezmann (first goal for his new club), Luis Suarez (a brace) and long-term Arsenal target Ousmane Dembele.
Lionel Messi returned to Barcelona earlier this month after an extended break on the back of his participation with Argentina at the COPA America tournament in Brazil.
Full Squad: Marc Andre Ter Stegen, Nelson Semedo, Gerard Piqué, Ivan Rakitic, Sergio Busquets, Philippe Coutinho, Denis Suárez, Ousmane Dembélé, Rafinha, Christian Lenglet, Antoine Griezmann, Jordi Alba, Carles Aleñá, Sergi Roberto, Frenkie De Jong, Samuel Umtiti, Junior, Iñaki Peña and Carlos Pérez.
