Messi on suspension knife-edge for Copa del Rey final
Anumber of potential suspensions could hit Barcelona if they reach the Copa del Rey final, affecting Lionel Messi in particular after the forward's booking against Atletico Madrid.
Given a yellow card for an 89th minute foul on Filipe Luis in the semi-final first leg on Wednesday night, Messi is joined by Samuel Umtiti and Jordi Alba in walking a disciplinary tightrope at the Camp Nou next week.
With Neymar already unavailable for the return match having picked up a second Copa card at the Estadio Vicente Calderon, Barcelona must shuffle their pack with protecting both their players and their 2-1 lead in mind.
The precarious situation was addressed by former club director Toni Freixa on Twitter after the first leg, who wrote: "Neymar suspended and Messi warned ahead of the final, all very normal."
Back in Catalunya, the second leg kicks off at 21:00 CET on February 7.
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