MX23RW : Saturday, December 14 11:57:45| >> :120:17189:17189:

Luis Enrique: 'We can cope without Lionel Messi'

Barcelona can cope without injury-stricken Lionel Messi, who is facing two months on the sidelines with knee ligament damage, according to their manager Luis Enrique.

Barcelona boss Luis Enrique is confident that his team can cope without Lionel Messi, who is facing up to two months on the sidelines with a knee problem.

The Argentine was forced off after just 10 minutes of Barca's La Liga clash with Las Palmas on Saturday and subsequent tests revealed that the attacker had suffered ligament damage.

Enrique is aware of the size of the task facing the Catalan outfit without their leading marksman, but the Spaniard has said that his team have "many quality players".

"We'll play no differently than we do with Messi. Messi liberates us and gives us solutions, but we have to make do with what we have. We have many quality players," Enrique told reporters.

"Whenever there's an injury, it's the team who have to react. I don't like to have a single player carrying the team. This is a test and obstacle that we have to overcome.

"We accept the challenge [of playing without Messi] and what we have to do is improve our performance. It's in our hands. You gain experience from situations like this, not when everything goes smoothly. Injuries are the worst thing in football, and we know how important Messi is."

A double from Luis Suarez saw Barcelona beat Las Palmas at Camp Nou on Saturday.

ID:248909: cacheID:248909:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2422:
Written by
Matt Law
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Sergio Busquets for Barcelona on January 4, 2015
Read Next:
Busquets bemoans Barcelona's injuries
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona17122350193138
2Real Madrid16113234132136
3Atletico MadridAtletico16105130111935
4Athletic Bilbao1795326151132
5Villarreal157532725226
6Real Sociedad167361611524
7Osasuna166642225-324
8Mallorca177371620-424
9GironaGirona166462223-122
10Celta Vigo166372527-221
11Real BetisBetis165651820-221
12Rayo Vallecano155461516-119
13Sevilla165471723-619
14Las PalmasLas Palmas165382227-518
15Getafe163761113-216
16AlavesAlaves164391827-915
17Leganes163671423-915
18Espanyol1541101528-1313
19Real ValladolidValladolid1733111234-2212
20Valencia152491323-1010


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!