Sabella : "Messi seems in good spirits to me"

Argentina coach Alejandro Sabella was asked about how Leo Messi is progressing with his recovery

from the hamstring injury he suffered during the meeting with Betis last month. Sabella warned that Messi, who is expected to be out of action until the New Year, should not be rushed into returning before he is 100 per cent recovered.

“The last two times I saw Lionel, he was on the treatment table. We chatted for a while and on Monday, he took to the practice pitch and he seems well, he’s in good spirits”, Sabella told reporters before setting off for Brazil where he will attend Friday’s FIFA 2014 World Cup draw gala. “We have to be patient because it’s an injury which will take time to heal properly. But he will recover and I’m sure he’ll be fine”.

Regarding Friday’s 2014 World Cup draw, Sabella says he is expecting an atypical outcome as there are some surprises amongst the seeded teams such as Belgium and Switzerland. “Some teams will have to play their matches in some of the tougher parts while others won’t. We hope we land in a group which isn’t too complicated – if it all goes according to plan, we won’t be worn out by the end of the group stage,” he explained, adding that he will make the most of his time in Brazil to visit the hotel where Argentina will be staying and several of the stadiums where potentially, they could play at the tournament.