Lionel Messi, Ivan Rakitic return to Barcelona first-team training

Messi and Rakitic returned to Barcelona first team training

Monday marked Barcelona’s first training session in the lead up to Saturday’s clash against Real Madrid and the team was boosted by the return of a few familiar faces. Lionel Messi, Ivan Rakitic and Marc Andre ter Stegen featured in the first team’s preparations for the weekend game, Barcelona’s official website reported.

Luis Enrique’s side have been diminished due to injuries and the transfer ban inposed on Barcelona since the start of this season. The playing XI has been missing the likes of Messi and Rakitic who were a pivotal cog of last season’s treble-winning Barca team.

The Catalan juggernaut has still managed to roll on after a minor setback, but there is no doubt that both players and fans eagerly await the return of their team-mates, especially ahead of the El Clasico.

While Ter-Stegen only returned to training after missing a couple of sessions having had dental surgery, the return of the other 2 will be a major psychological advantage to the rest of the team if not a direct impact on the pitch.

Recent reports indicated that Leo Messi would feature in the El Clasico after he had trained with the Barcelona B team, but this is the strongest indication so far the the Argentine captain will at least be on the bench at the Bernabeu.

The full squad, though, was not present on the training pitch as many are currently on international duty with their respective countries and are also expected to miss Tuesday’s session. Although, the returning trio are likely to feature in training again.

Barcelona pay respect to Paris attack victims in training

The events of 13 November in Paris are now burned in people’s minds and the threat lingers on, but players have continued to pay their respects to the victims of the terrible tragedy. In the same spirit, Barcelona’s first training after the attacks began with a minute’s silence to mark the sombre occasion.

It was an attack that hit close to home as explosions that occurred outside the Stade de France were heard in the stadium during the international friendly between France and Germany.

Nations and players have all come out in a defiant spirit, refusing to let attacks like the Paris one faze them as the French national football team prepared to face the England team in their next friendly after the football governing bodies of both nations came to an agreement.