Ernesto Valverde: Messi ‘unique in the history of football’

Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde is hoping the combination of Lionel Messi’s expected return and a passionate Nou Camp crowd will be enough to overpower Roma in the quarter-finals of the Champions League this evening.

Barca host the first leg of the last-eight tie and are likely to have their star man back in the starting XI following hamstring trouble. Messi suffered a niggle on international duty with Argentina and began on the bench for Saturday’s visit to Sevilla. Even that could not stop him locating the spotlight, grabbing an 89th-minute equaliser after stepping off the bench at 2-0 down.

“Messi is unique in the world. Unique in the history of football,” Valverde said yesterday.