Neymar to the rescue

Posted Saturday, August 24, 2013 by Marca.com

Events have started to speed up with Messi's injury. Martino was taking a cautious approach to introducing Neymer into the first team. He hadn't started the new signing against Levante or in Madrid. Everything has changed now though. Messi will miss Saturday's game against Málaga and the 'Azulgrana' manager is seriously considering starting the Brazilian at La Rosaleda.

However, Neymar is far from being at his best. It could be because of the anaemia he suffered from during the preseason or the short holidays he had because of the Confederations Cup, but the fact of the matter is that he's not ready to play a full 90 minutes. If he comes out to start in Málaga, it's almost certain that he won't get to the end of the game. Martino shouldn’t forget that three days later he has the return leg of the 'Supercopa' against the 'Rojiblancos'.

Messi's involvement for this second game is not certain either. The technical staff are cautious about taking even the smallest risk with him. They want a Messi who is in perfect form and firing on all cylinders, hoping he can finally get over the muscular issues he's been suffering from since April.

They also need to tread carefully with Neymar and use him cautiously. Wednesday's game is a decider, and the team needs to go into the fixture with as many fit players as possible. It's not worth 'exhausting' Neymar against Málaga.

Despite Messi's importance in the team, his absence in 'La Liga' shouldn't pose a huge problem. Evidence of this can be clearly seen from the end of last season, when the Argentine missed six games and Barcelona put on some convincing performances, picking up six victories, scoring 17 goals and only conceding two.