Messi: Terrible to play at altitude

Lionel Messi said it was ‘terrible’ to play at altitude after Argentina’s 1-1 draw with Bolivia on Tuesday in their CONMEBOL World Cup qualifier.

Marcelo Moreno gifted the hosts the lead midway through the first half, before Ever Banega restored parity shortly before the half-time whistle.

And Messi was pleased to see his side get a draw in difficult conditions.

“It is terrible to play here at altitude, so a draw is a good result for us,” Messi said.

“Every time you make an effort or play at high pace, you need time to recover.

“Some of the players had a headache and others felt a bit dizzy, but there was nothing wrong with me.”

The Barcelona star then looked ahead to the remaining qualification games and stressed that the next two matches will be crucial.

“We now have two big games coming up. We host Colombia and we are travelling to Ecuador. It will be nice matches,” he said.

Argentina sit top of the table with 24 points from 11 games, holding a four-point lead over second-placed Ecuador, who have a game in hand.