Villa out of Malaga clash

Published Jan. 13, 2013 6:15 a.m. ET

foxsports

Barcelona's David Villa has been ruled out of Sunday's Primera Division encounter at Malaga through injury.

The Spain striker, who scored twice in the 5-0 midweek Copa del Rey win over Cordoba, picked up a hamstring injury in training on Saturday and has been withdrawn from the squad.

Villa was also forced off in the 77th minute of Thursday's cup tie with a leg injury and Barca say it is too soon to tell how long today's latest setback will keep him on the sidelines.

"The striker noticed discomfort during training this afternoon and, after testing, has been shown to have a hamstring elongation and will not play in Malaga," read a statement on fcbarcelona.es.

"(The injury's) evolution will decide his availability for the next games, as determined by the club's medical services."