Football club Barcelona has announced that its star player, Lionel Messi is undergoing treatment on kidney stones after the illness was first noticed in December. The five-time world recipient of the Player of the Year award “will be submitted to various tests on Monday and Tuesday to assess the development of kidney problems he suffered last December”, the Spanish champions said in a statement.
Messi is due back on Wednesday, when Barca would face Valencia in the Copa del Rey semi-final second leg, with the Catalans firmly in lead after the 7-0 first leg thrashing they dished to Gary Neville’s team as Messi bagged a hat-trick.
Messi suffered renal colic, a problem usually brought on by kidney stones, in Japan in December forcing him to miss eventual winners Barcelona’s semi-final against China’s Guangzhou Evergrande.
He recovered in time to play in the final where Barca won Argentina’s River Plate 3-0 as he scored the first goal.
