Messi suffers arm injury as Barca put four past Sevilla

BARCELONA: Lionel Messi scored and then went off injured as Barcelona beat Sevilla 4-2 on Saturday to move back to the top of La Liga.

Messi had to be substituted in the 26th minute at the Camp Nou after falling awkwardly on his right arm, but not before the Argentinian had doubled Barca’s lead with a curling left-footed finish.Barcelona now face an anxious wait, with the Clasico against Real Madrid fast-approaching next weekend.

Philippe Coutinho had opened the scoring and Luis Suarez’s penalty, which he also earned, made sure of victory before a three-goal flurry in the final 11 minutes.Pablo Sarabia and Luis Muriel twice reduced the deficit to two, either side of a sweeping volley from Ivan Rakitic. Messi fell to the ground following a tussle with Sevilla’s Franco Vazquez and, as his right hand tried to cushion the landing, his elbow appeared to buckle.