Messi out of El Clasico, will miss 3 weeks with arm fracture

It could have been a lot worse.

Hours after collapsing to the Camp Nou pitch in noticeable pain, Lionel Messi has avoided long-term injury, with Barcelona confirming late Saturday that the Argentine attacker is set to miss “approximately three weeks” with a broken radial bone in his right arm.

The injury rules Messi out of next weekend’s El Clasico in the Catalan capital against rival Real Madrid. Barcelona’s top scorer will also miss Wednesday’s Champions League visit from Inter and, in all likelihood, the return fixture at the San Siro on Nov. 6.

Messi, 31, was injured when he and Sevilla’s Franco Vazquez were entangled during the first half of Saturday’s league clash, falling awkwardly on his right arm just five minutes after doubling the host’s lead. He was subbed for Ousmane Dembele shortly after and Barcelona went on to a 4-2 victory, which sees them vault Los Rojiblancos for top spot in La Liga.

Ernesto Valverde’s charges enter the midweek continental clash sitting first in Group B on six points, level with Inter but boasting a superior goal differential.