Lionel Messi Finishes October With One Goal; Is Injury Hindering Superstar's Play?

Lionel Messi scored one goal in the month of October and is enduring his worst stretch of play in two-and-a-half years.

The reigning Ballon d'Or player has not scored in four straight Spanish League matches and has struggled to assert himself on the pitch.

The good news is that Barcelona has continued to excel without needing its top player to be in superb form. However, the big question surrounding the situation is when Messi will recover from the current slump he is enduring.

"I continue to think the same about him," Barcelona Coach Gerardo Martino said about his slumping superstar, according to The Telegraph. "It is difficult to do an individual analysis of a player in every single game, but Leo continues to be the most important player in a team replete with important figures.

"His manner of playing still offers us a huge amount and if the team continues to win you will see the best of our best players shortly," he added before noting that Messi was not concerned with his sub-par play. "I don't think he is worried. It is a coincidence, in the same way that it is rare for a player to score at least a goal in every game of half a season (as Messi did last season), it is rare that he goes three or four games without scoring."

Messi's last goal came in a 1-1 draw against AC Milan in the Champions League a few weeks ago. That was the only goal the superstar scored in October.

Many are questioning if Messi will continue to struggle with a lingering leg injury that has haunted him all season. Messi was injured throughout the end of the 2012-13 season and his absence was costly to Barcelona in the Champions League. This season, the team has gotten stronger performances from Neymar, Alexis Sanchez, and Cesc Fabregas making up for the void left by Messi.