Three Levante players were booked for fouls on the Argentine teenage talent during the second half of Barcelona's 1-0 win over the struggling side from Valencia.

One of the trio of trippers, Alexis Suarez, was by common consent among Spanish pundits lucky to not be sent off after brutally hacking down Messi in injury time.

"He (Messi) is a player that's a pleasure to watch but we may have to think about altering some of the things he does to avoid the fouls he's suffering when he makes some of his individual plays," admitted Rijkaard.

Amazingly, Messi does not turn 20 until June 24.

The Argentine international has already suffered two injuries this season including breaking a bone in his foot in November which kept him out of action for three months.

"The only way to stop him is to foul him but I am not going to stoop to suggesting something so unsporting to my players," said Getafe coach Bernd Schuster in the wake of Barcelona's 5-2 win in the Spanish Cup two weeks ago.

On that occasion, Messi scored one goal which was reminiscent of Diego Maradona's famous strike against England in the 1986 World Cup, going more than half the length of the field and around four defenders before scoring.

However, despite Schuster's admiration and ethics, there is the widespread suspicion that some other Spanish first division coaches might not have the same standards as the German who himself suffered from some suspect tactics during his own brilliant playing career.