Celtic vs Barcelona preview - Messi absence saddens Lennon

Neil Lennon believes the absence of Lionel Messi from Tuesday night's Champions League clash with Barcelona at Parkhead is a boost for Celtic, but insists it is also "tinged with sadness".

The 26-year-old Argentina forward injured his thigh in a 2-0 Primera Division win over Almeria on Saturday and has been ruled out for between two and three weeks.

Hoops boss Lennon, whose side lost their Group H opener 2-0 to AC Milan at San Siro, said: "It is obviously very good news for us because he is the best player in the world.

"However, it is tinged with sadness because it is always fantastic to see the great players play here in Glasgow.

"We are looking forward to the game, we welcome Barcelona with open arms and we are hoping it is going to be another great occasion."

Neymar is likely to take over Messi's superstar mantle for the evening and become the focus of the Barca attack but Lennon does not believe the two players can be compared.

The former Parkhead skipper said: "It is like comparing a dog with a cat.

"They are two different types, two different players altogether.

"He (Neymar) is wonderfully gifted, quick, predominantly playing on the left-hand side and he has goals in him.

"He is only young and he has a fantastic future but it is far too early to make comparisons to Messi.

"There is only one player currently who could arguably be around the calibre of Messi and that is Cristiano Ronaldo."

Derk Boerrigter is a doubt for Celtic.

The Hoops wide-man sustained a knock against Morton last week and is still struggling with an ankle complaint he picked up against Ross County a few weeks ago and did not train today.

Midfielder Beram Kayal (groin) and winger James Forrest (virus) did train and are available while midfielder Joe Ledley is still out with a groin injury.

Barcelona sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta concedes losing Messi is a blow but has pointed out the Catalan giants are no one-man team.

Four-time world player of the year Messi has, unsurprisingly, been instrumental in Barca's early season success with eight goals in La Liga already this term and his loss is a major setback for Gerardo Martino's side, but Zubizarreta does not want to use the Argentinian's absence as an excuse.

"He's a very difficult player to replace," Zubizarreta told reporters as Barca prepared to fly to Scotland.

"We must do without the best player in the world, but we have a squad with extraordinary players.

"The players who are here are very good and we have to play with what we have."

Even with Messi in their side Barcelona were still beaten by Celtic when the clubs met in last season's Champions League at Celtic Park.

Goals from Victor Wanyama and Tony Watt put the home side 2-0 up and although Messi pulled a goal back in stoppage time, it was not enough to prevent the four-time European champions from slumping to defeat.

Zubizarreta is looking forward to returning to Glasgow but insists they are not being driven by thoughts of revenge.

"It's always a pleasure to play at Celtic Park," he said.

"We're expecting a great atmosphere against an opponent who made things very difficult for us last year.

"They showed they knew how to play and knew how to beat us.

"They are very strong on their ground and they look to play with a lot of pressure.

"We know how we must play. Revenge? No. We're going there to enjoy this game, this atmosphere. We'll see what happens."