Injured Messi a doubt as Barcelona travel to Malaga

(AFP) - Lionel Messi is a major doubt for Barcelona's trip to Malaga on Sunday after he was again forced off with bruising on his hamstring during the Catalans' 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid on Wednesday.

Messi has now played the 90 minutes in just one of Barcelona and Argentina's last 27 matches stretching back to when he initially picked up a hamstring strain against Paris Saint-Germain in April.

Should the 26-year-old not recover in time to play on Sunday against a much changed Malaga side to the one that made the Champions League quarter-finals last season, Neymar could be handed his first start after coming off the bench to salvage a draw for Gerardo Martino's men with his first goal for the club against Atletico in the Super Cup.

“I hope it will be the first goal of many,” he told Spanish television station TVE.

“I score very few goals with my head so they are even more valuable. I am happy to have got my first goal.

“It is a shame that I haven't been able to play with Messi yet, he is the best in the world and ev- eryone wants to play with him.”Whilst Neymar has so far been Barca's only new recruit during the transfer window, there has been a revolving door of comings and goings at La Rosaleda with new boss Bernd Schuster welcoming eight new signings to replace the likes of Isco, Jeremy Toulalan, Martin Demichelis and Julio Baptista who left over the past few months.