Leo Messi returns to the pitch after 30-day break

Leo Messi needed to breathe football, touch the ball, inhale the smell of the pitch... get back to enjoying his profession.

He was able to do just this on Monday evening, during Barça's first training session of their English stage of preparation.

Thirty days after the huge disappointment he suffered in the Copa America final, that preceded his decision to retire from international football, Leo was stepping back onto a field.

This time he was with his Barcelona teammates, and with his close friend Luis Suarez, the deadly duo inseparable during the session.

Showing off his new look, Messi actively participated in the 'rondo' (piggy-in-the-middle) and the first running exercises.

It is clear that feeling like a footballer again is the best medicine for the Argentine star, not only after the defeat to Chile in the USA, but also the legal problems that followed.

Messi decided to return to training a week earlier than expected, and he did so in good spirits, determined to put the recent setbacks behind him, and continue showing to the world just who is number one.