Messi plans to return in Spain friendly

Lionel Messi says he plans to be involved in Argentina’s friendly with Spain on Tuesday, despite concerns over a hamstring injury.

The Barcelona star sat out the 2-0 win over Italy at the Etihad Stadium last Friday after admitting a muscle problem had been bothering him “for some time”.

However, the 30-year-old hopes to feature against Julen Lopetegui’s side at the Wanda Metropolitano.

“I was excited to be able to take part in the game against Italy, but I’m happy with the group’s meet-up, I have good feelings,” he told Fox Sports.

“In principle, the idea is to play against Spain. I’m going to see how I am.”

The Barcelona forward admitted last week the 2018 World Cup could well be his last chance to win the trophy, having been disappointed in the tournaments of 2006, 2010 and 2014.

“We always think it’s the last chance to be world champions,” he reiterated. “An important generation is passing and a lot of players are going to change. We take it as a nice opportunity.

“You have to think about this, that it’ll be the last time and try to take advantage of that chance.”