Die Allianz T-D-P » Pellegrini said: It was not a problem of ligament o

BARCELONA, Spain -- Barcelona lost Lionel Messi to injury and a chance to beat a title rival on Wednesday, when it was held to a 1-1 draw by Atletico Madrid in the Spanish league.Messi gingerly walked off the Camp Nou pitch in the 58th minute, just moments before Atletico substitutes Angel Correa and Fernando Torres went on and linked up to equalize.The defending champions said Messi will be sidelined for three weeks with a groin strain.With Leo Messi out, football loses, we all lose, Barcelona coach Luis Enrique said. We now have to look for different solutions. Of course we are stronger with Messi, but we are still strong enough.The night couldnt have started better for Barcelona, after seeing Real Madrids hopes of breaking its Spanish league record for consecutive wins dashed by a 1-1 draw with Villarreal.Barcelona was in control after Ivan Rakitic broke through Atleticos staunch defense in the 41st with a header from Andres Iniestas cross.But the match quickly changed course when Messi came up lame following a sprint to fight for a ball with Diego Godin.The Argentina star grimaced as he touched his right thigh. After walking gingerly for a few minutes, he sat on the turf, pulled out his shin guards and unlaced his boots.Arda Turan hastily warmed up and rushed on to replace him.Sensing an opportunity to transform the game, Atletico coach Diego Simeone sent on Torres and Correa.The move immediately paid off when they caught Barcelona napping after a foul. Torres glancing touch of a pass left Correa clear to rifle a low shot off the post and into the net in the 61st.Simeone said that the goal coming on the heels of Messis exit was coincidence, pure coincidence.The key to the match was the change we made at the start of the second half, Simeone said. We defended very well throughout, but in the second half we were able to be protagonists as well.Neymar tried to lead Barcelona in Messis absence, while Godin drew a save from goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen in the final minutes.League leader Real Madrid leads Sevilla by two points. Barcelona is three behind, followed by Atletico four points back.---REAL MADRID 1, VILLARREAL 1Real Madrid was aiming to break Barcelonas league record of 16 straight wins set in 2010-11. Adding to its strong finish to last season, Madrid had won the first four rounds and tied Barcelonas milestone by beating Espanyol on Sunday.Sergio Ramos featured in both goals at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.The Madrid defender helped Villarreal go in front in the first-half stoppage time when he blocked Manuel Trigueros shot with his arm, setting up Bruno Soriano to score the penalty.Ramos made amends three minutes after the restart when he leapt higher than two defenders to head Madrid level.Neither Cristiano Ronaldo nor Gareth Bale looked at their sharpest after both Madrid forwards were rested against Espanyol.Bale was substituted with 20 minutes left, and Ronaldo wasted a chance to secure a late win when he shot into the arms of goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo.Madrid lost left back Marcelo to an undisclosed injury in the first half when he walked off the pitch.I am happy with my players, coach Zinedine Zidane said. Im not going to talk about records. We are going to rest and think about the next match.---CELTA VIGO 2, SPORTING GIJON 1Iago Aspas penalty three minutes from time secured Celta Vigo its first win of the season as it edged Sporting Gijon.Hugo Mallo put Celta ahead in the 66th before Duje Cop equalized with a spot kick of his own.---OTHER ACTIONReal Sociedad striker William Jose scored twice against his former team to lead a 4-1 win over Las Palmas.Athletic Bilbao also kept Granada winless with a 2-1 victory from goals by Raul Garcia and Aymeric Laporte.Wilson Ramos Jersey . -- Jonathan Drouin gave Halifax the boost it needed to edge host Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Pete Alonso Jersey . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early. https://www.cheapmetsjerseys.us/2160l-jacob-rhame-jersey-mets.html . -- The boos poured down on Tom Brady and the New England Patriots at the end of a horrible first half. Luis Guillorme Jersey . - Goaltender Philippe Desrosiers of the Rimouski Oceanic has broken a shutout record that was only three months old in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. John Franco Jersey . The Cleveland Indians, Tampa Bay Rays, and Texas Rangers all won on Sunday meaning the Rangers will host the Rays in a play-in game on Monday.Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini hopes David Silvas injury problems are behind him.Silva is finally back in the City squad after missing the last three Premier League games with an ankle problem.Pellegrini has been adamant Silva does not need surgery, but wanted to ensure he was ready to feature against Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals next week. Ahead of his sides clash with Stoke City on Saturday, live on Sky Sports, Pellegrini said: It was not a problem of ligament or muscle, it was a hard kick that could never recover 100 per cent from.I hope, with the last treatment, that he is 100 per cent fit now and he wont have any more problems in the future.He has improved a lot this week so he is very confident he can play tomorrow. We will see how many minutes he will play and then we will assess him after that, but the way he is feeling at the moment I dont think he will have any problems. Manuel Pellegrini insists a top-four place is in their own hands Pellegrini recently spoke of his short stint as boss of Real Madrid, whom they face in a Champions League semi-final first leg at the Etihad next Tuesday, and revealed he was interested in taking Silva from Valencia to the Bernabeu.ddddddddddddI was interested. Hes a very good player and I think every manager wants to have David Silva in his squad.But it was too many years ago to remember why a deal did not happen.Also See:City interesting for HummelsRace for the top fourRonaldo in race to face CityGet a ￡10 free bet! ' ' '