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Messi may return to action this weekend for Barca
BARCELONA: Barcelona maestro Lionel Messi is preparing to make his return from injury against Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday to ensure he can start in next week’s
BARCELONA: Barcelona maestro Lionel Messi is preparing to make his return from injury against Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday to ensure he can start in next week’s mouth-watering Champions League clash with Manchester City.
The five-time World Player of the Year has been out of action since injuring his groin in the 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid on September 21, missing victories over Sporting Gijon and Borussia Moenchengladbach and the 4-3 defeat at Celta Vigo. The Argentina captain also missed his country’s World Cup qualifiers against Peru and Paraguay.
According to Barcelona newspaper Mundo Deportivo, Messi is set to start Saturday’s La Liga fixture with Deportivo at the Nou Camp on the bench with a view to coming on in the second half.
MUST-WIN GAME FOR CHILE AGAINST PERU
MONTEVIDEO: Chile face a must-win showdown with fierce regional rivals Peru on Tuesday as the South American champions aim to make up lost ground after a stumbling start to their 2018 World Cup qualification campaign.
After a 3-0 thrashing by Ecuador in Quito on Thursday, the Chileans limped back to Santiago a full five points adrift of the qualifying places in South America’s marathon battle for World Cup berths.
Chile, the dominant force in South America over the past two years with back-to-back wins in the 2015 and 2016 Copa Americas, still have plenty of time to turn their campaign around with nine games left. But anything less than a win against Peru on Tuesday risks leaving them with a mountain to climb if they are to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup.
HART SAYS NO REGRETS OVER TORINO MOVE
LONDON: Goalkeeper Joe Hart does not regret his move to Italian side Torino on a season-long loan and believes it was the best available option after falling out of favour with Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.
“Football is a game of opinions and some people have a great opinion of me and some people probably think I’m absolutely useless,” Hart told British media.
“Unfortunately for me, one of the guys’ opinions in charge of my club wasn’t as strong as it needed to be. It was what it was.”
FIFA sued by Qatar world cup worker
ZURICH: A Bangladeshi man, who says he was harshly exploited while working on 2022 World Cup facilities in Qatar, is suing FIFA for allegedly failing to use its influence to ensure workers are treated fairly.
The Gulf state has faced criticism of its treatment of workers from Amnesty International, the Building and Wood Workers’ International organisation and others. But the case announced on Monday is the first time the governing body has been targeted.
The suit, launched in Zurich with the backing of the largest labour union in the Netherlands, calls on FIFA to force Qatar to adopt ‘minimum labour standards’ for migrant workers preparing for the tournament, including at least the right to quit a job or leave the country.
