Barcelona (Spain): Barcelona star Lionel Messi tore a ligament in his left knee during the defending champion's Spanish league match against Las Palmas on Saturday.
Barcelona confirmed the injury after Messi had tests at a nearby Barcelona hospital. The club said they expect him out "seven to eight weeks."
Messi went down after colliding with Las Palmas defender Pedro Bigas in the third minute.
He writhed on the ground in front of the Las Palmas goal before play was stopped. Following medical attention, the Argentina star went back on, but two minutes later asked to be replaced in the eighth after carefully trotting around and testing his leg with a pair of passes.
Messi walked off by himself as Munir El Haddadi replaced the four-time world player of the year in front of a quiet Camp Nou crowd of almost 75,000.
Spanish television showed images of Messi leaving the hospital with a limp as he got into a car.
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His teammates showed their concern after the final whistle of the 2-1 victory over the promoted Las Palmas.
"He is the best player in th world, so of course we will notice his absence," Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets said after the match.
Among several other matches, Messi will miss the first "clasico" match of the season against Real Madrid on November 21.
Messi was limited by a persistent series of hamstring injuries during 2013, but returned to his best form last season and scored 58 goals.
The 28-year-old Messi led Barcelona to a sweep of the Champions League, Spanish league and Copa del Rey titles last campaign.
He is the all-time highest scorer for Barcelona, and also has scored more goals in the Spanish league than anyone.
Barcelona has already lost midfielder Rafina to a ligament tear for an expected six months.
