Barcelona boss Luis Enrique has revealed that Lionel Messi is "progressing well" as he bids to return from a serious knee injury.
The Argentine attacker has been out of action since suffering cruciate ligament damage towards the end of September, but it had been thought that he would return for El Clasico later this month.
While that is no longer expected to be the case, Enrique is happy with how the 28-year-old is progressing.
"I have no news. He's recovering quite normally for a player with that kind of injury. Every player has a different recovery process to go through but as far as I'm aware he is progressing well, as any player would," Enrique, whose team are preparing for Wednesday's Champions League match against BATE Borisov, told reporters.
Messi, who is now expected to return in December, scored three times in six La Liga games for Barcelona in the early part of the campaign.