Friday, October 23, 2009

El Capi to renew till 2013


Carles Puyol gave Barcelona fans much joy when he announced that he will renew his contract till 2013, thus ending weeks of speculation about his future.

Puyol is the heart and soul of the team, and to have him renew means that any doubts that could have been placed on his future can now be discarded.

"Carles will stay here for many years because he is a Barca man," Xavi was quoted as saying by El Mundo Deportivo. "He is an example to everyone and his renewal is fantastic news."

Puyol and Guardiola made the announcement in training and this was followed by a standing ovation from the players. The contract length means that Puyol will be 35 by the time he is set to leave, hence making it very likely that he will retire at the club where he is already a legend.


Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Robinho loan deal to be tied up in early November


It seems Barcelona has been brought to earth by the lack of depth in the forward line, as is shown by the club's attempts to secure the signature of Manchester City forward cum winger Robinho, who has grown disillusioned at Eastlands.

Reports from Catalan paper Sport recently stated that Manchester City's oil-rich owners have consented to the deal to bring Robinho to the Camp Nou stadium as early as the January transfer window.

Sport now claims that there has been further contact between the two clubs in the last few hours as they look to reach an agreement that will see the Brazilian sign for Barcelona on loan for the rest of the season.

Barcelona are reportedly not keen on protracted negotiations and are aiming to seal the deal within three weeks, long before the winter transfer window opens and their contingent of African players leave for their continental championship.

Sport also believe that relations are currently strained between Citizens boss Mark Hughes and Robinho. The manager is apparently still unhappy with the Brazilian's frequently-expressed desire to leave and has given the go-ahead for the transfer to take place.

Barcelona are ready to pay €3.2m to take the former Real Madrid man on loan for six months, with a set price of €35m to make the transfer permanent in the summer.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

David Villa will miss Barcelona match




The Barcelona camp can heave a huge sigh of relief with the news that David Villa and Joaquin will both be absent for the clash at the Mestalla when La Liga resumes after the international break.

Star striker Villa suffered a muscular injury in the game against Racing Santander and has been ruled out for three weeks, while Joaquin Sanchez has been ruled out for 20 days with a thigh problem.

This news was first reported by Marca.



Monday, October 5, 2009

Sloppy win over Almeria, Real Madrid loss take Barca to La Liga summit



Barcelona seized undisputed top spot in La Liga with an uncharacteristically lacklustre 1-0 home win over Almeria, thanks to Real Madrid's 1-2 defeat away to Sevilla.

Pedro scored a fantastic goal on the half hour mark to give Barcelona the win. It was not a good game however. Xavi and Iniesta were shackled well by Ortiz and Chico, and Almeria made sure that Barcelona were made to work very hard.

Birthday-boy Ibrahimovic was unable to score his sixth goal in as many games, being denied by a fantastic save late in the game.

Carles Puyol, meanwhile, celebrated his 10th season as a Barcelona player with a solid performance. He was absolutely immense in defense.