Barcelona breezed past Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande in the semifinal of the FIFA Club World Cup, but the mood was dampened by the absence of one of their stars.

Prior to the game, the club announced that Lionel Messi would be sidelined with after he woke up with abdominal pain; Brazilian star Neymar was on the bench as he is recovering from a groin injury.

“Leo Messi will not be playing in today’s Club World Cup semifinal against Guangzhou Evergrande,” read a statement on the team’s website. “The Argentinian striker is suffering from renal colic.” Renal colic is a type of pain usually caused by kidney stones.

Messi’s avaiability for the final against River Plate on Sunday will be determined after further medical tests. On the pitch, Luis Suarez netted an easy hat trick to put the European champions through.

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Photo: Lionel Messi of Barcelona scores his teams fifth goal during the UEFA Champions League Group E match between FC Barcelona and AS Roma at Camp Nou on November 24, 2015 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

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Joe Kozlowski

Article by Joe Kozlowski

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