It is common knowledge that Lionel Messi desperately needs these
two moths to really recuperate from been driven by Barcelona and
Argentina.
Messi really needs the rest – he’s been around the world in 64 days three times.
Calculating the football matches and commercial commitments of the four times Ballon d’Or winner Madrid-based Diario AS has come up with the staggering figure of 122,333 km – that’s three times around the equator.
It goes some way to explaining why Messi has now been given two months to get back to his best.
The Barcelona number 10 went to 14 different countries on four continents in the summer, with charity commitments, benefit games and sponsorship appearances taking up almost as much time as playing for club and country.
He had already visited Africa, the US and Italy before reporting back for pre-season training and then went on Barça’s tour of the States and South-East Asia.
Before the season got going he also pulled on the famous number 10 shirt in Munich, Norway, Poland, Thailand and Malaysia and scoring five goals in five pre-season matches looked to have overcome injury problems that bothered him towards the end of last season.
But the strains of so much travelling appear to have contributed to a
general fatigue that have made him more susceptible to injuries. He
suffered thigh strains in both legs before and after the season started
and the most recent injury picked up at the weekend has forced the club
to act.
He will spend the first part of his eight-week break in Barcelona before going to Argentina before the end of the year. Barcelona’s all-important visit to the Vicente Calderon on January 12 to play currently second placed Atletico Madrid has been penciled in as his return date.
Barcelona are confident that in the five league games between now and then; a first-round-proper Spanish Cup game and two Champions League matches, they will cope without their talisman.
Messi really needs the rest – he’s been around the world in 64 days three times.
Calculating the football matches and commercial commitments of the four times Ballon d’Or winner Madrid-based Diario AS has come up with the staggering figure of 122,333 km – that’s three times around the equator.
It goes some way to explaining why Messi has now been given two months to get back to his best.
The Barcelona number 10 went to 14 different countries on four continents in the summer, with charity commitments, benefit games and sponsorship appearances taking up almost as much time as playing for club and country.
He had already visited Africa, the US and Italy before reporting back for pre-season training and then went on Barça’s tour of the States and South-East Asia.
Before the season got going he also pulled on the famous number 10 shirt in Munich, Norway, Poland, Thailand and Malaysia and scoring five goals in five pre-season matches looked to have overcome injury problems that bothered him towards the end of last season.
Messi’s travel graph
He will spend the first part of his eight-week break in Barcelona before going to Argentina before the end of the year. Barcelona’s all-important visit to the Vicente Calderon on January 12 to play currently second placed Atletico Madrid has been penciled in as his return date.
Barcelona are confident that in the five league games between now and then; a first-round-proper Spanish Cup game and two Champions League matches, they will cope without their talisman.
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