Lionel Messi Misses Barcelona Training for the Birth of His 2nd Child

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique was kind enough to allow Lionel Messi to miss training on Friday morning.

David Ramos/Getty Images

It wasn't that the Argentina star was suffering from an injury, though that might well have been the case were he not fortunate enough to escape unharmed from a dodgy pitch in Texas.

According to Sport, Messi was absent so he could be with his wife, Antonella Roccuzzo, for the birth of their second child.

There was some confusion over the name, which Sport and many others in Spain first reported as Benjamin.

Ahead of an official announcement, Messi's brother tweeted in Spanish that the child's name was Mateo, confirmed by Spanish football writer Guillem Balague:

Barcelona face Atletico Madrid in La Liga on Saturday.

[Twitter: Sport English]