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Barcelona's Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets fit for UCL clash vs. Roma

Sergio Busquets and Lionel Messi are both fit for the first leg of Barcelona's Champions League quarterfinal against Roma.

Busquets has been sidelined for three weeks since breaking a bone in his foot against Chelsea on March 14 but has been included in the squad for Wednesday's game against the defending Serie A champions.

The midfielder returned to training on Monday and is expected to start the game at Camp Nou.

"Busquets has trained twice this week, gradually improving, and we think he will be even better [on Wednesday]," coach Ernesto Valverde said in a news conference.

"He's an important player for us and for Spain because of the level he's consistently been playing at for so many years. We think he will be OK [to start] but I can't guarantee that yet."

Messi, meanwhile, missed Argentina's friendlies against Italy and Spain with an injury but came on as a substitute for Barca at the weekend, scoring a last-minute equaliser in a 2-2 draw with Sevilla.

"If Messi is in the squad, then he has a chance of starting," Valverde said when asked if the forward would begin the game against Roma.

However, he was reluctant to confirm whether Messi has completely recovered from a minor hamstring problem, merely saying that he's "better" than he was at the weekend.

Left-back Lucas Digne is the only Barca player missing through injury, while Philippe Coutinho is cup-tied having represented Liverpool in the group stages of the competition.

Yerry Mina and Aleix Vidal have also been left out of the squad, with Valverde expected to name the same side which beat Chelsea, which would mean Ousmane Dembele starting on the right.