Rome: Celebrated forward Lionel Messi, who is recovering from a thigh muscle injury, does not expect to feature in Argentina’s World Cup opener against Ivory Coast.

“Today, I don’t think I’ll be in the team,” the gifted teenager said on Saturday.

“I haven’t played much, I’ve been out of action for some time,” Messi said.

He has not played a competitive match since he was injured for Barcelona against Chelsea in March. “I just played 15 minutes the other day,” he added in reference to Argentina’s farewell game in Buenos Aires in which coach Jose Pekerman’s team beat the national under-20s 4-0.

Messi, an important part of Argentina’s bid for a third World Cup victory in Germany, has been undergoing special treatment to speed his recovery. “I know I still have some way to go...(but) I’m relaxed, I know I have to keep working,” he said.

“I’m a bit short but I feel better each day. I think I’ll get into rhythm in the time left (before the World Cup).

“I want to play the final and I hope we meet Brazil,” added Messi, who inspired Argentina to their fifth World Youth Cup title in The Netherlands last year.

Argentina, who meet Ivory Coast in their opening Group C match in Hamburg on June 10, are training in Rome. They arrived on Friday and will remain until their warm-up against fellow finalists Angola in Salerno in southern Italy on Tuesday.