Lionel Messi Out for Almost Eight Weeks With Knee Ligament Damage: Barcelona

Lionel Messi, 28, looks set to be sidelined for at least eight Barca games, as well as Argentina's first four 2018 World Cup qualifiers, including a meeting a home to Brazil on November 13.

Lionel Messi will be out for up to eight weeks after suffering knee ligament damage in Barcelona's 2-1 win over Las Palmas on Saturday, the Catalan giants confirmed.

"Tests have confirmed that Leo Messi suffered a torn internal collateral knee ligament. The estimated time out will be seven to eight weeks," Barcelona said in a statement.
Messi, 28, looks set to be sidelined for at least eight Barca games, as well as Argentina's first four 2018 World Cup qualifiers, including a meeting a home to Brazil on November 13.
Moreover, he is now a huge doubt for the first El Clasico of the season away to Real Madrid on November 21.
Barca face Sevilla, Rayo Vallecano, Eibar, Getafe and Villarreal in La Liga before visiting the Bernabeu.
The European champions host Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League on Tuesday and will also have to do without Messi for back-to-back games against BATE Borisov.
Messi clashed with Las Palmas defender Pedro Bigas as he tried to turn the ball home inside the area and suffered a blow to his left knee in the process.
He briefly returned to the field after receiving treatment, but was clearly unable to run freely before he was replaced by Munir El Haddadi.
Video images then emerged of Messi limping heavily he left hospital after undergoing tests.
It is the first serious injury Messi has suffered since a hamstring injury kept him out for the final two months of 2013.

Robert Lewandowski's five goals in nine minutes for Bayern Munich

The Polish striker stepped off the bench at half-time against Wolfsburg to score all Bayern's goals during a 5-1 comeback win on Tuesday.
Lewandowski scored the quickest Bundesliga hat-trick (four minutes). Then set a new record for four goals in the same match. And then did likewise for five, too.

Former England Star Gary Lineker Says Wayne Rooney Record Will Stay For "Long Time"

Gary Lineker believes Wayne Rooney will be England's leading goal-scorer for "a long time" after the Manchester United striker netted a record-breaking 50th international goal against Switzerland.

Rooney's late penalty in Tuesday's 2-0 Euro 2016 qualifier at Wembley eclipsed Bobby Charlton's 45-year-old mark of 49 and left him two goals in front of Lineker, who scored 48 England goals between 1984 and 1992.

With Rooney not yet 30 and the second-highest scorer in the current England set-up, Danny Welbeck, having only scored 14 international goals, Lineker believes it will be a while before the captain's tally is bettered.

"I think it'll last a long time," Lineker, 54, told a group of journalists in London on Wednesday. "We've got no-one anywhere near it at the moment, so it's going to last at least 10 years.