Lionel Messi will miss Barcelona's next two La Liga matches and may be out for longer after spraining his ankle in Sunday's 2-1 win at Atletico Madrid, the Spanish club said Monday. Tests confirmed ligament damage to the Argentina forward's right ankle and he will be unavailable for the home game against Sporting Gijon Wednesday and Saturday's trip to Athletic Bilbao, Barca said on their website. Messi was taken off on a stretcher in added time at the Calderon after he was felled by a bad tackle from Czech defender Tomas Ujfalusi. Ujfalusi was shown a straight red for the challenge, which has revived debate in Spain about whether players like Messi and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo need special protection from referees. The test carried out Monday also confirmed there was no damage to the bone. Wenger charged for rant Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has been charged with improper conduct by the Football Association after making contact with the fourth official as his team conceded a late equalizer at Sunderland Saturday. Wenger was angry that Darren Bent scored 15 seconds after the allotted four minutes of added time had expired. Wenger, who appeared to sarcastically pat Martin Atkinson on the back, could accept the charge and a one-match touchline ban and $12,500 fine under the FA's new fast-track disciplinary procedures. The FA announced that Wenger has been “charged with using insulting and/or abusive language and behavior amounting to improper conduct.” Klinsmann ended US talks Juergen Klinsmann says he negotiated with the US Soccer Federation for nearly a month to become coach before ending talks when the USSF wouldn't put his authority in writing. Klinsmann discussed the talks during an interview broadcast Sunday the Kansas City Wizards' pregame show. The USSF rehired Bob Bradley for a second four-year stint after ending talks with Klinsmann, who coached Germany to a third-place finish in the 2006 Cup.
