Barcelona quartet called up for World Cup qualifiers

Barcelona quartet Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Ronald Araujo, and Philippe Coutinho have all been called up for World Cup qualifiers in October.

Messi been named in the Argentina squad for fixtures against Ecuador and Bolivia. The 33-year-old was originally suspended for the Ecuador clash, after being sent off at the Copa America, but it’s since emerged he is now available to play.

Argentina face Ecuador in Buenos Aires on October 8 and then take on Bolivia five days later in La Paz.

Suarez and Araujo are in the Uruguay squad for games against Chile in Montevideo and Ecuador in Quito. Coutinho has been called up by Brazil for qualifiers against Bolivia and Peru.

There have been conflicting reports about Messi and Argentina ahead of the squad announcement. Some outlets have claimed he would be forced to quarantine if he goes off on international duty and will miss Barca games, while other have claimed that’s not the case.