Barcelona have confirmed that Lionel Messi suffered a fresh injury in the club's 2-1 win over Villarreal on Tuesday night.
The newly crowned Best FIFA Men's Player 2019 was making his first start of the season in the clash at Camp Nou, but was withdrawn at halftime in what Ernesto Valverde described as a precautionary substitution.
The Barcelona manager said: "When something happens to Messi, the world stops, but it doesn't seem to be anything more than a nuisance in the adductor and we substituted him as a precaution."
However, Barcelona have now released an official statement confirming Messi strained his left thigh during the encounter and is undergoing evaluation.