Barcelona - Talented striker Lionel Messi is set to play with Argentina at the Beijing Olympics in August and will therefore miss the Champions League qualifying round with his club, Barcelona. "It is my turn to decide and the Olympic Games are something I am not going to be able to play ever again," Messi explained Thursday.
He is currently preparing for the friendly game that the Argentine Olympic team is set to play with Catalonia on Saturday.
The player admitted that he had not yet talked to Barcelona about his decision, but he was confident that they would accept his choice.
"I think they understand what I think and I do not think there is going to be any conflict or problem about this," Messi said.
Since he is under 23, Barcelona cannot prevent him from playing at the Olympics, where participant teams are U-23 with up to three older players allowed. In this framework, the club could only wait for Messi's decision.
The striker stressed he was "very excited" about the possibility of playing at the Olympics, where Argentina is set to defend the gold medal it won in Athens 2004.
He added that colleagues both at Barcelona and at the Argentine national team had told him how "beautiful and impressive it is and how much it is worth while to be there and to enjoy it."
Barcelona, third in the latest edition of La Liga, will have to play two qualifying games in August that will determine whether the Catalan club plays in the next edition of the Champions League or the UEFA Cup.
