Barcelona forward Lionel Messi will miss the next seven to eight weeks after sustaining a knee injury in Saturday’s defeat of Las Palmas at Camp Nou.

The Argentina international sustained the injury three minutes into the game when visiting defender Pedro Bigas put in a last-ditch challenge to block a shot.

Messi left the pitch to undergo treatment and initially seemed to be ready to continue after rejoining the action but he sat down once more minutes later and was unable to carry on.

Having visited a local clinic for tests, the club confirmed his period of absence, stating: “Messi has a tear in the internal collateral ligament of his left knee. He will be out for around 7-8 weeks.”

The news is an obvious blow to Barca Coach Luis Enrique with Messi set to miss up to five La Liga games and four in the Champions League. His obvious comeback target will be the season’s first Clasico against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on the weekend of November 21/22.

Munir replaced Messi against Las Palmas and played a part in Luis Suarez’s second goal as Barca won 2-1 - Jonathan Viera netting the visitors’ consolation.

•Photo shows Lionel Messi.