Tonight's clash against Real Sociedad will be the first official fixture of the post-Messi era, making it a special day for all Barcelona fans. While the loss of Leo will be a tough blow to take, it represents an opportunity for other players to take a step up and try and fill his boots. Two of the first team players - Antoine Griezmann and Gerard Piqué - took to Twitter to show their excitement for tonight's season opener on Saturday morning.
The ex-Atlético forward sent an early morning motivational message that read "Bon dia culers" ["Good morning, Barça fans"] alongside two raised fist emojis. With Messi's departure, the French forward must now make the step up in terms of leadership and on-pitch performance. In fact, Koeman himself admitted as much in his pre-match press conference, in which he said that Griezmann "will play where Leo did" in the line up.
RELATED STORIES
A few minutes later, Piqué replied to the tweet with "Bon dia, @AntoGriezmann!" with an emoji symbolising his love for the player. This is sign of the good spirit in the dressing room, which will be key in the season ahead.