Chris Smalling on Lionel Messi Collision: 'He Knew It Was an Accident'

Chris Smalling has revealed he made peace with Lionel Messi after giving the five-time Ballon d'Or winner a bloodied nose during Manchester United's 1-0 defeat to Barcelona at Old Trafford on Wednesday.

Just before the half-hour mark of United's UEFA Champions League quarter-final first leg against Barca, Smalling left Messi on the turf after winning the ball with a robust challenge.

The Argentinian had to be treated and was bleeding heavily:

He returned to the pitch and played the full 90 minutes as Barca protected their 1-0 lead from Luke Shaw's own goal in the 12th minute.

on Thursday, Smalling said he spoke to Messi after the game and confirmed the 31-year-old accepted the Englishman had not meant to catch him in the face, per BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast (h/t Goal's Chris Burton):

"We spoke afterwards. We had a brief chat and shook hands. He knew it was an accident. I didn't realise at the time that I'd actually caught him like that.

"[Luis] Suarez [came up to me] after the game as well. We had a good tussle and he just shook my hand afterwards and said 'good luck'. It's nice when you can have that battle on the pitch and then there's respect after the game because, ultimately, you are just trying to do your best."

United will have a mountain to climb when they go to the Camp Nou on Tuesday for the second leg after failing to muster a single shot on target on Wednesday:

Now they have to take the game to the Blaugrana on their home turf and earn a win in Catalonia, something only Real Betis have achieved in competitive action since August 2017.

Meanwhile, Barca have not lost at home in the Champions League since May 2013.

The Red Devils have pulled off one remarkable turnaround already this season in the Champions League, beating Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 at the Parc des Princes to overturn a 2-0 deficit from the first leg in the last 16:

Producing similar heroics would be an incredible feat for Smalling and United. Before that, though, they will face West Ham United at Old Trafford on Saturday looking to maintain their hopes of a top-four Premier League finish.