Wazzup with FC BARCELONA?!! (News)

[Classik]

Midfielders on target



03/05/2012 15:34
Barça’s midfield have notched up a total of 39 goals so far this season- the best stats of the Guardiola era

La celebració del tercer gol contra l'Sporting. FOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ-FCB.
All three goals against Sporting were scored by midfielders, with Iniesta and Xavi breaking into the box to beat the tight opposition defence and Keita swerving in a great shot from outside the box. Goals from the midfield have become a key part of this season's success against packed defences, with 39 strikes so far.
Cesc leads the way
The leading scorer from midfield continues to beCesc Fabregas, with 15, whilst Xavi has scored 12with Andrés Iniesta (5), Thiago Alcántara (3) andSeydou Keita (2) also chipping in alongside B team player Sergi Roberto, who's scored one in the Cup and one in the Champions League.
Record under Guardiola
The 39 goals so far is the highest number from the midfield in the Guardiola era: last season they contributed 24, 17 the year before last and 27 in the 2008/09 campaign.
In all, Barça have scored an astonishing 135 goals in all competitions so far this season.

FCB,

Jordi Clos

 

[Classik]

Back to work preparing for Europe
www.fcbarcelona.cat 03/05/2012 12:06
The squad were back in training this morning as they begin preparations for Wednesday’s Champions League tie with Bayer Leverkusen
Leo Messi was back with the rest of the group –made up of the 15 available first team players plus Tello and Muniesa from Barça B

Leo Messi / PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ-FCB
[HIGHLIGHT]Tuesday
The schedule for Tuesday, as the team continuespreparation for the game against Bayer, is as follows:
- 15.00: Press conference by Robin Dutt and a Bayer player at the Hotel Juan Carlos I
- 17.15: Bayer Leverkusen training session at the Camp Nou. First quarter of an hour open to the media.
- 17.45: Press conference by Pep Guardiola and Sergio Busquets in the Ricard Maxenchs Press Room
- 18.45 : FC Barcelona training session at the Camp Nou. First quarter of an hour open to the media.al Camp Nou.[/HIGHLIGHT]
After Sunday's day off, the squad returned to work on pitch number 1 at the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper this morning with the focus on Wednesday's second leg game against Bayer Leverkusen at the Camp Nou.
Leo Messi was given a short break by Guardiola over the weekend, as he was suspended, but theArgentinean was back in training this morning alongside the rest of the available first team squad members and Tello and Muniesa from Barça B. As usual before a Champions League game, the players trained with the official UCL balls.
Alexis out on the training pitch
Alexis Sánchez, who was injured in the dying moments of Saturday's game against Sporting, did recovery work on the training pitch, whilst the other injured players -Abidal, Thiago, Afellayand Villa continued working on their own recovery programmes.

FCB

 

[Classik]

Adriano: “we won’t be giving the league awayâ€


03/05/2012 13:15
The Brazilian reckons that Barça’s win against Sporting will strengthen their aim to: “keep on fighting until the last day of this league seasonâ€
Adriano also explained the Pique’ incident after the Barça man’s red card: “he and the ref were talking about it after the game and they cleared things upâ€

Adriano / PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ - FCB
[highlight]One more assist
With his assist for Iniesta’s goal on Saturday, Adriano has now set up 11 this season – the fifth best record of anyone in the team this season.[/highlight]
Adriano Correia believes that the game against Sporting: "was very important for us, it shows that we will keep on fighting until the last day of the season" . Although he admitted it won't be easy to cut the 10 point deficit with Real Madrid he insisted: "we'll not be giving this league away – it'll cost them".
For the Brazilian: "we've really improved over the last few weeks", despite the run of injuries, with Alexis the latest to suffer: "that means we haven't been able to maintain our form at 100% like last year".
Piqué
Adriano also spoke about Piqué 's red card and the news that the referees technical committee wants to take the centre half to the Spanish Federation's disciplinary panel for his comments after the game, explaining: "the most important thing is that Piqué and the ref spoke together after the game and they cleared things up. I think there's too much talk about Gerard – he's done nothing. It really would be too much if theywanted to fine him".
Adriano insisted that "I'm a little tired of discussing refs" and preferred to focus on Wednesday's game against Bayer: "a team who are coming off a great win against Bayern Munich - we have to concentrate totally on the game".

FCB,

Anna Segura

 

[Classik]

Cirque du Soleil visit Barça training
www.fcbarcelona.cat 03/05/2012 14:01
The members of the theatre company who are currently putting on the show ‘Corteo’ in Barcelona, visited this morning’s first team’s training session

Cirque du Soleil visit Barça training / PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ - FCB
There was some special visitors at Barça's Monday morning training session, when members of the cast of the Cirque du Soleil , whoare currently performing in the show 'Corteo' in the city, took the opportunity to see the best team in the world training and to have their photos taken with some of the players.
The visit was a return for the one made by Messi , Pedro , Alves , Mascherano and Sergio Busquets ,who went to see the spectacular circus show.

FCB

 

[Classik]

Midfielders on target
Jordi Clos 03/05/2012 15:34
Barça’s midfield have notched up a total of 39 goals so far this season- the best stats of the Guardiola era

Celebrating Barça's third goal against Sporting. PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ-FCB.
All three goals against Sporting were scored by midfielders, with Iniesta and Xavi breaking into the box to beat the tight opposition defence and Keita swerving in a great shot from outside the box. Goals from the midfield have become a key part of this season's success against packed defences, with 39 strikes so far.
Cesc leads the way
The leading scorer from midfield continues to be Cesc Fabregas, with 15, whilst Xavi has scored 12 with Andrés Iniesta (5), Thiago Alcántara (3) and Seydou Keita (2) also chipping in alongside B team player Sergi Roberto , who's scored one in the Cup and one in the Champions League.
Record under Guardiola
The 39 goals so far is the highest number from the midfield in the Guardiola era: last season they contributed 24, 17 the year before last and 27 in the 2008/09 campaign.
In all, Barça have scored an astonishing 135 goals in all competitions so far this season.

FCB

 

[Classik]

Barça and Boca seal the deal in Buenos Aires
www.fcbarcelona.cat 03/05/2012 20:30
Jordi Mestre, FC Barcelona youth football director, said that this “project requires time and patience”
The two clubs are both pleased with the agreement, the deal shows that these “two powerful clubs are betting on football in a decisive way”

PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ-FCB.
Jordi Mestre , FC Barcelona youth football director; Daniel Angelici , Boca Juniors President and Jordi Raffo , Boca Juniors youth football general coordinator, presented the agreement between the two clubs in Buenos Aires.
Jordi Mestre highlighted the historic dedication of FC Barcelona to football youth systems: “it’s a big day for FC Barcelona because the club has relied on our youth system for a long time and the truth is that it has paid dividends. We have club players that are world champions and that’sdue to many years of work.”
“It’s very important that we take advantage of this model”
The Barça director said that he’s pleased with the Boca-Barça agreement, “two powerful clubs are betting on football in a decisive way. I hope that it [the agreement] is successful, it’s a projectthat requires time and patience. Evidently, the results will come if the work we put in is good. For us it’s a satisfaction to be able to share this project with a club like Boca. It’s very exciting that the model that we’ve been working on all these years can be shared and used.”
Angelici, Boca Juniors President, talked about the details of the deal that was agreed upon lastAugust, when he spoke to President Sandro Rosell. “We started to have a couple of concrete ideas that we could sign off on, an agreement of collaboration for our youngsters,” said Angelici.
Barça’s model, admired
Raffo, technical director of the project, says that a club like Barça is an example of “achieving that old dream of having the same style of football in all of Argentina’s football divisions.” Raffo praised the Catalan club’s model: “there is a process for forming players, a methodological process, part of it is in the infrastructure and in organization, FC Barcelona have shared it with us and we’re transplanting it to a number of footballers that Boca have been working with for a while.”
The agreement between FC Barcelona and Boca Juniors is a strategic alliance that binds both clubs to the task of teaching young footballers, through which Barça will transfer the ‘La Candela’ project to CA Boca Juniors. In return, FC Barcelona will have priority on future transfers of those players that will now don the Boca strip.

FCB

 

[Classik]

Freixa: “We want to know the rules of the game"
www.fcbarcelona.cat 03/05/2012 21:19
The spokesman outlined the Club’s position on the statements made by Sánchez Arminio when he said that the Technical Referee Committee intends to report Gerard Piqué

Toni Freixa / PHOTO: ARXIU FCB
The Club will not attend tomorrow's RFEF meeting
FC Barcelona will not attend tomorrow’s Cup Final venue meeting chaired by the RFEF, “to show our disappointment.†Freixa said that in previous meetings to choose a venue for the final that “our objective arguments were not given value. We’ll leave it in the RFEF’s hand to pick a final venue.â€
The Club will appeal Piqué's card
The Club also decided to appeal the red card shown to Gerard Piqué in the match against Sporting Gijón.
Toni Freixa , Board of Directors spokesman, outlined FC Barcelona’s position on the declarations made by the President of the Technical Referee Committee, Victoriano Sánchez Arminio , where he said that the Committee would report Gerard Piqué for his statements after Barça’s League match this weekend. Freixa, who gave a press conference after meeting with President Sandro Rosell , saidthat “our players and coaching staff have alwaysbehaved impeccably. Our players, with FC Barcelona and the national team, have been impeccable.†The spokesman petitioned that theClub’s players “deserve impeccable treatment.â€
“We aren’t lucky with the refereesâ€
One of FC Barcelona’s commitments is to “not argue about the job referees have,†said Freixa. However, the spokesman said that “this year we aren’t having much luck [with them],†and now itappears, to Mr. Rosell, that things “are looking worse.†Freixa said that “we aren’t losing faith and we hope that we end up with no arguments in regards to the way we currently feel.â€
On the statements made by Sánchez Arminio, Freixa considers that the statements are “a display to the media, an opportunistic action that raises improper comparisons in a top class competition like the Spanish League.†The spokesman also said that Piqué told the referee how he felt after the match; that exchange didn’t make it into the referee’s post-match report. Therefore, Mr. Arminio’s words “position the player in the middle of an underserved controversy.â€
Actions the Club intends to take
FC Barcelona has decided to undertake a series of actions to address the current situation. Firstly, Freixa said that “we have sent a letter to the Real Federación Español de Fútbol (RFEF) where we formally request that they inform us on the conditions and criteria that the Referee Committee follows when they report [a case] to the Competition Committee.†In the letter, Freixasaid that FC Barcelona “wants to know what conditions and criteria are applied by the Competition Committee [when the Committee] acts in a disciplinary manner.†In short, “we wantto know what the rules of the game are,†said Freixa.
FC Barcelona has also requested tha “the composition of the Competition Committee be reviewed, it must be more representative instead of the [current] unilateral composition.â€

FCB

 

[Classik]

Great record in the Last 16

03/06/2012 10:16
Barça have come through their last four last 16 Champions League ties
Last five second leg games all wonLike581Send
L'equip és fiable als vuitens / FOTO: ARXIU FCB
Barça host Bayer Leverkusen this Wednesday in the second leg of their last 16 Champions League tie and they will be looking to continue the success they have enjoyed at this stage during the last four seasons, having won all four ties and always won the second leg. Leo Messi has proved to be the star for the team at this stage – as at so many others!
2010/11: ARSENAL 2-1 FCB / FCB 3-1 ARSENAL
Last season Barça came back from a 2-1 defeat in London with a fantastic performance in the second leg. Messi (2) and Xavi got the goals that saw the future champions through, though despite having a hatful of chances the game ended on a nervy note for Guardiola's men, since a goal from the Gunners would have seen them through .
2009/10: STUTTGART 1-1 FCB / FCB 4-0 STUTTGART
After a tougher than expected first leg in Germany, the reigning champs brushed aside Stuttgart in the return game with goals from Messi (2), Pedro and Bojan.
2008/09: O. LYON 1-1 FCB / FCB 5-2 O.LYON
After a valuable 1-1 draw in Lyon, Barça raced to a4-0 lead in the first half at the Camp Nou, with goals from Henry (2), Messi and Eto'o. Lyon mounted a mini-comeback after the break before Keita made certain of a quarter final spot with the fifth.
2007/08: CELTIC 2-3 FCB / FCB 1-0 CELTIC
Frank Rijkaard's team put in one of the best performances of the season in Glasgow and the second leg looked likely to be a placed affair, especially once Xavi put Barça one up early on. However, the Scots made Barça suffer, none more so than Leo Messi who was forced off with tears in his eyes by an injury that was to keep him out for much of the rest of the season.
2006/07: FCB 1-2 LIVERPOOL / LIVERPOOL 0-1 FCB
The last time Barça failed to progress beyond the last 16 was when they came up against Liverpool , who went on to beat Milan in the final and take the trophy that year. With Barça finishing second in their group, the first leg was at the Camp Nou, where Liverpool grabbed a 1-2 win, though Barça began their successful five year run of second leg victories when they won 0-1 at Anfield – a famous win, but not enough to get them through.

FCB,

Jordi Clos

 

[Classik]

Bayer 04 Leverkusen: irregular on the road



03/06/2012 10:29
FC Barcelona’s Champions League rival tonight isthe third best team on the road in the Bundesliga, however, the German hasn’t won a match away from the BayArena in Europe

Bayer Leverkusen is the third best team on the road in the Bundesliga / PHOTO: www.bayer04.de
Baryer 04 Leverkusen is capable of the best and the worst away from the BayArena . The Germanside’s trajectory in the Bundesliga has been solid: they are the third best team in Germany onthe road , they’ve only lost one of their last eight games outside the BayArena. Their only loss wasagainst the current League leaders, Borussia Dortmund (1-0). In total, Bayer’s balance on the road is five victories, four draws and three defeats; a record that’s better than Bayer Munich 's, who they been this weekend by 2-0 .
No victories in Europe
While the team led by Robin Dutt has been fearsome on the road in Germany, they haven’t been able to produce the same results in the Champions League. In fact, Bayer 04 Leverkusen hasn’t won a game away from the BayArena in the Champions League this year. They lost to Chelsea (2-0) and Valencia (3-1) and earned a point against Genk (1-1). Two defeats and one draw, however, that didn’t stop them from finishing second in their group.
They won 1-4 on the road once this season
Looking at all of Bayer 04 Leverkusen’s results away from the BayArena, only one would give them passage to the quarter-finals tonight. On September 17th, Dutt’s team beat Ausburg by 1-4.

FCB,

Roger Bogunyà

 

[Classik]

SUPPORTERS' CLUBS
Presentation of the poster for the Aplec de València
www.fcbarcelona.cat 03/06/2012 11:31
Pau Vilanova met with representatives of the two organising penyes

Presentació de Cartell del IX Aplec de Penyes de València i la Marina Alta
There was a lot of Penya activity before the kickoff of the Sporting game last Saturday, with the unveiling of seven plaques in the Stadium and an important event in the Club's offices too.
The event was the presentation of the poster forthe Aplec de Penyes Barcelonistes de les Comarques de València i la Marina Alta , which will be celebrating its ninth edition this year. This year, the event is being organised by two clubs - the Ondara and Pedreguer Penyes and is scheduled for April 13th.
Pau Vilanova , head of the Club's Comissió Social, received a delegation of the two organising clubs led by Francisco Ballester , President of the Penya Barcelonista Pedreguer, and the Presidentof the Penya Barcelonista d'Ondara, Miguel Gomis .
Salvador Torres , the delegate at the Consell Consultiu de Penyes for the Comarques de València was also present at the presentation, aswell as representatives from thirteen penyes who showed their support for April's event.

FCB

 

[Classik]

Cup final: at the Vicente Calderón on May 25th
www.fcbarcelona.cat 03/06/2012 15:10
This Tuesday, the Spanish Football Federation announced the date and location of the Cup finalbetween FC Barcelona and Athletic Club

FC Barcelona vs Athletic Club Bilbao / PHOTO: FCB
The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) announced that the King’s Cup final between FC Barcelona and Athetic Club will be played on May 25 at the Vicente Calderón in Madrid. Picking the Calderón as the venue for the final was the Club’s latest proposition in the last meeting held by FC Barcelona, Athletic Club, and the Federation.
This will be the seventh Cup final between FC Barcelona and Athletic Club Bilbao. Of the past six, the Azulgranas have won four and the Basques two. The last time both teams met in the competition was on May 13th, 2009, at Mestalla.

FCB

 

[Classik]

Spanish League Round Up Week 26


03/06/2012 16:34
The teams below the top three continue to jostle for the other European places, with Levante, Bilbao and Málaga all winning, whilst the other challengers drew. Zaragoza may have started what would be an astonishing comebackat the bottom with their win over Villarreal

Gerard Piqué against Rayo / PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ- FCB
Levante hang on to fourth place
Levante chalked up their second win on the run to maintain fourth spot, beating Betis 3-1 on
Monday night, though boss Juan Ignacio Martinez insisted after the game: “the Champions
League isn’t our objective. With 38 points, if we don’t win any more games we could still go
down – sometimes we forget that we are Levanteâ€. Bilbao and Málaga are just a point behind,
after wins against Real Sociedad and Getafe. Bielsa’s team beat their Basque neighbours with
two excellent goals from Suseata in a typically intense derby game, whilst Cazorla also scored
a beauty in Málaga’s 1-3 win - the third after the hosts had gone in one up at the break. Next
weekend sees Levante at La Rosaleda whilst Bilbao are away to Osasuna for what could be a
big week in deciding the fourth Champions League place.
Rayo climb into the mix
The Pamplona team also came back from a goal down at half time, to take a point at Mallorca
and stay in touch with the leaders on 35 points, whilst Rayo are also in the mix, a further
point behind, following their extraordinary 4-2 win over Racing. Racing managed to have their
keeper sent off after just two minutes and still go two goals up within the first half hour, but
Rayo hit back with two strikes from Michu , before Tamudo and Piti finished the visitors off.
Below Rayo, Atlético Madrid and Sevilla shared the points in a 1-1 draw at the Sanchez Pijuan –
a result that probably does neither team many favours, leaving them both on 33 points.
Disappointing Espanyol
Espanyol are also on 33 points, but their weekend was perhaps the most disappointing.
Following a week of insisting that they would go to the Bernabéu full of fight, Pochettino ’s
team simply rolled over as Real Madrid swept them aside, with two goals from Higuain and
one each from Ronaldo , Khedira and Kaka . Of the nine teams below Espanyol, only one won
this weekend – and that was bottom club Zaragoza, who beat Villarreal 2-1 with an extra time
goal from ex-Barça B player Abraham to close the gap on Sporting to just three points, with
fourth from bottom Villarreal still nine points away in the distance.
Busy day for the ref in Granada
Valencia kept the pursuing pack at bay with a 0-1 win over Granada in a game that saw nine
Valencia players booked, whilst Granada will be without four players who were also shown a
yellow for next week’s game against Atlético Madrid.

FCB,

Nick Bedson

 

[Classik]

Fourth Cup final at the Vicente Calderón
www.fcbarcelona.cat 03/06/2012 17:00
FC Barcelona won once (against Sporting Gijón) and lost twice (against Real Madrid and Zaragoza) in Cup finals at the Vicente Calderón

Vicente Calderón
25 years have passed since FC Barcelona played a final at the Vincente Calderón. It was on April 26th 1986, against Zaragoza, Barça lost the title game by 0-1 (goal from Rubén Sosa ). That was the last of the three finals that Barça has played, until now, at Atlético Madrid’s stadium. Barça also lost the first time they played there (0-4 against Real Madrid), while they won in their second attempt (3-1 against Sporting Gijón).
13th final at the Calderón
In total, this will be the 13th Cup final at the Vicente Calderón. The last time the Colchonero stadium hosted a championship match was in the 2007/08 season, where Valencia took on Getafe (3-1 to Los Che ).
It will by Athletic Club’s third final at the Calderón. The Basques won their first championship match, in 1972/73, against Castellón (2-0). Four years later, Athletic Club lost to Betis in a penalty shootout (0-0 and 8-7 inthe shootout).
Vicente Calderón, with a capacity of 54,837, was inaugurated in 1966.

FCB

 

[Classik]

The German press believes the tie is over


03/06/2012 17:02
The journalists that cover Bayer 04 Leverkusen on a daily basis believe that the Germans are playing for their “reputation and prestige†in tomorrow’s match at the Camp Nou

According to the German press, Bayer 04 Leverkusen will not win at the Camp Nou / PHOTO: ÀLEX CAPARRÓS-FCB
The journalists that follow Bayer 04 Leverkusen on a daily basis agree that the German side cannot earn a victory at the Camp Nou that will see them through to the quarter-finals. “The have less than a 1% chance. With a 1-3 from the away leg, any normal conclusion indicates that it’s impossible for Bayer 04 Leverkusen to mount a comeback,†said Frank Lussem , journalist for the magazine Kicker . “A lot of things can happen in football, the objective is to get a good result, the game should serve the Club to gain recognition, reputation and prestige,†said Bild ’s Phillip Arens .
The second half of the away leg, the path to follow
Despite what the German press is saying, the fact that Robin Dutt ’s team have won three consecutive matches allows for a glimmer of hope. “Ever since the second half against Barça, the team has worked and they beat Augsburg , Cologne and Bayern Munich . That’s three consecutive wins for the first time this year. Bayer 04 was courageous in the second half against Barça. Having courage against teams like Valencia or Chelsea could be enough, but 9 out of 10 times against Barça it won’t be,†said Lussem.
Holger Dahl , from the German television channel WDR , said: “Bayer 04 was very passive in the first half against Barça, they committed a lot of errors in their buildup. The hope is that they’ll be more risky at the Camp Nou, like in the second half. That’s when they gave Barça troubles.â€
Great respect for Barça
The three journalists agree that Bayer 04 Leverkusen will not play defensively at the Camp Nou. “There’s a lot of respect, even more so with Barça, but I don’t think they’ll hide,†said Lussem. Dahl praised Guardiola’s Barça: “every team that goes up against Barça thinks they’re playing against the future European champion. In Germany, we’re surprised with the point difference in La Liga, because the perception is that Barça is the best team in the world.†Arens said: “there isn’t a better team in the world. For Bayer 04 Leverkusen it’ a game to learn, to play without fear. If they are afraid, they’ll sink at theCamp Nou.â€

FCB,

Roger Bogunyà

 

[Classik]

Dutt: “We have nothing to lose and a lot towinâ€


03/06/2012 17:10
The Bayer 04 Leverkusen manager knows that they are in a difficult situation after losing 3-1 athome but “if we play like we did in the second half of the first leg, Barça will have to work very hardâ€
Dutt has no plans to rest any players because “this is a chance to test ourselves against the best and we have to play against the bestâ€
Striker Kiessling said that whatever happens at the Camp Nou they want to go home knowing that they played a good game

PHOTO: ÃLEX CAPARRÓS - FCB
Training at the Camp Nou
Bayer 04 Leverkusen trained this evening on thesame pitch where they will play on Wednesday night. The first 15 minutes of the session at the Camp Nou were open to the media.
Robin Dutt has arrived in Barcelona intending "toget a good result ... to get lots of recognition and good vibrations". The Bayer 04 Leverkusen boss reckons that they are coming to the Camp Nou with "nothing to lose and a lot to win". The 3-1 deficit leaves his team with a mountain climb, but he feels they learned a lot from their meeting in Germany a fortnight ago. "If we play like we did in the first half of that match, we won't be happy, but if we play like we did in the second, when we generated much more pressure, Barça will have to work very hard." He added that they need to avoid giving away the ball so easily. "We have to chase the ball, fight for it, go forwards and take all the chances we get".
Looking to impress
Robin Dutt's striker Stefan Kiessling also spoke to the press, and agreed that "we want to play a good game and see what can happen after 90 minutes." He mentioned the 4,000 German fans that will be there with them at the Camp Nou."We have to play well for ourselves and for them... the happiness and excitement about playing at a stadium like FC Barcelona's are enormous".

FCB,

Anna Segura

 

[Classik]

Busquets: “Bayer will attackâ€


03/06/2012 18:55
Sergio Busquets expects Bayer 04 Leverkusen to attack, “like in the second half of the away match. It’ll be an open match and that can benefit usâ€
“I’m not convinced that they’ll be satisfied with 30% possession. They’ll come out to attack and to retain as much possession as they can. We willtooâ€
“I’ve always said that I’d like to go to the Olympic Games. I can play both competitions, butthat’s not up to me. It depends on the national coachesâ€

Olympic Games
Sergio Busquets publicly expressed his desire to play in the Olympic Games his summer in London.“I’ve always been open about my desire to play in the Olympic Games. Luis Milla knows this. It’s clear that I can be on both lists [Olympic Games and the EURO], I can play both competitions but that’s not up to me. It depends on the national coaches.â€
Sergio Busquets , who returns to the team after being suspend for the match against Sporting Gijón , is aware of the importance of tomorrow’s match, “we’re playing for a spot in the quarter-finals of the Champions League . Our game plan will be the same. We’re going to try to win. We know that we have a good result and that Bayer will create goal scoring chances. They’ll come out to attack, like in the second half [in Germany]. This can be beneficial for us because we’ll have more space and it will be an open match.â€
The Barça midfielder responded to Robin Dutt ’s pre-match statements: “I don’t believe they’ll be satisfied with 30% ball possession. They’ll come out to attack and they’ll try to retain possession as much as they can. We will too.†Barça is awareof how dangerous the German side can be, “they’re very powerful, very tall. When they go on the attack, they always have a lot of men [up the pitch]. We are the player that we are, it’s obvious that we aren’t a very tall team. If we commit fouls or give corners away, we’ll suffer. Therefore, the best thing to do is to avoid fouls and not concede corners,†said Busquets.
“We want to talk about footballâ€
Busquets said that the players “just want to talk about football.†The midfielder, when asked about the controversy after this weekend’s match, said, “Gerard Piqué is well, he’s focused on the match. A lot of people have talked about this but we’re only thinking about tomorrow’s match. We have maximum respect for the referees.â€
On the announcement that the King’s Cup final will be played at the Calderón, Busquets reiterated the statements made by his teammates and managr: “we said that we’d go where they told us to go. It’s a final that’s waiting for us at the end of the season, now we know where and when it will be.â€

FCB,

ALEIX SANTACANA

 

[Classik]

Guardiola: “We're playing to win and to qualify for the quarter-finalsâ€



03/06/2012 19:37
The Barça manager will not instruct his team to play defensively to protect the 1-3 lead they have over the German side
Guardiola admits that the Champions League “is a beautiful competition that allows us to take a break from the Leagueâ€
Guardiola completely agrees with the Club’s stance.

Cup final
The RFEF designated the Vicente Calderón as thevenue for the King’s Cup final . The Barça manager said that “if the other finalist wasn’t Barça, I’m sure Athletic Club would have played in the Bernabéu.â€
"El parany d'aquest any és que portem un resultat millor que altres anys"
“We must play a good game; we can’t go out to defend, we have to try to win and qualify for the quarter-finalsâ€
Despite the 1-3 result in the away leg, Pep Guardiola doesn’t believe the tie against Bayer 04 Leverkusen is over. The FC Barcelona manager reminded the packed press room of how difficult it was against Real Madrid in the return leg of the King’s Cup , despite winning 1-2 at the Bernabéu . “This year’s trap is that we’ve earned a better result than last year,†he said. Guardiola said that “we must play a good game; we can’t go out to defend, we have to try to win and qualify for the quarter-finals.â€
Aware of the Leverkusen's pace
The Barça manager is very aware of the dangers that Bayer 04 bring to pitch. “Their pace, their areal play, dead balls, that's what makes them dangerous.†Gaurdiola talked about Bayer 04’s game plan in the second half at the BayArena to highlight what his team should expect tomorrow: “when we let them run like in the second half [of the away leg], they’re stronger. We have to try to slow them down a bit and command the game in our side of the pitch.†Guardiola is wary of the team led by Robin Dutt , who said that his team has nothing to lose and everything to win in tomorrow’s showdown: “like any good German side, they never give up on anything. It appears as though they’re out of the match but suddenly they create goal scoring chances.â€
A break from La Liga
Guardiola has the chance to take his team to the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the fourth year in a row. The manager recognised that the continental competition is good for his team: “it’s a beautiful competition that allows usto make a clean break from La Liga. We’ll try to stay in the competition by playing a good game.â€
He agrees with the Club’s stance
“I completely agree with Toni Freixas,†said Guardiola when asked about the spokesman’s press conference. “We aren’t saying whether we agree or not on if Piqué should be punished, we want to know what the rules are. It appears as though the Board never does anything right, but we just want to know what criteria is used by the Committee to ban players.â€
On Gerard Piqué ’s statements after he was ejected from this weekend’s match, Guardiola blieves that every player should be held responsible for what they do. “If you limit them in the press room, you limit them on the pitch.â€

FCB,

Anna Segura

 

[Classik]

Guardiola names 20 players to Barça's Champions League squad
WWW.FCBARCELONA.CAT 03/06/2012 19:58
Puyol and Thiago will miss tomorrow’s Champions League match at the Camp Nou. Josep Guardiola named 20 players to the team
Barça trained this afternoon in the penultimate training session before tomorrow’s match againsthe German side
Tomorrow’s training session is scheduled to startat 12:00 at the Camp Nou

Barça training at the Camp Nou / PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ - FCB
[highlight]The list
Valdés, Pinto, Alves, Piqué, Fàbregas, Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, Mascherano, Keita, Busquets, Pedro, Adriano, Cuenca, Tello, Montoya, Bartra, Jonathan Dos Santos, Sergi Roberto and Muniesa.[/highlight]
Josep Guardiola decided to gather his team the day before the Champions League match against Bayer 04 Leverkusen . The manager named 20 players to the Barça team for the return leg of the last-16 round of the Champions League. Of the 20 Barça players, 14 are from the first team and 6 are Barça B players ( Montoya, Bartra, Jonathan Dos Santos, Sergi Roberto, Muniesa andTello ).
Carles Puyol , who is struggling with a minor injury, and Thiago , who is still recovering from his tibia injury, will miss the match.
Final training session on Wednesday
The Barça squad trained this afternoon at the Camp Nou . The session, which was open to the press for the first 15 minutes, started at 19:00. The team will take to the field tomorrow as wellin the last training session before the match against Leverkusen. The session will start at 12:00.
Upon completion of today’s training session, the team went to the Mandarin hotel. On Wednesday the team will train at 12:00 and return to the hotel at 13:30. They will eat together and then depart for the Camp Nou at 18:30. Kickoff against Bayer Leverkusen is at 20:45.

FCB

 

[Classik]

'FC Barcelona v Bayer 04 Leverkusen: Did you know...
www.fcbarcelona.cat 03/07/2012 09:00
FC Barcelona, who haven’t lost any of their last 13 European home matches, are looking to seal qualification for the last eight of the Champions League

Bayern 04 - FCB / PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ - FCB
The following is a selection of trivia connected to the game on Wednesday at the Camp Nou between FC Barcelona and Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the second round second leg of the ChampionsLeague.
- This will be the eighth meeting between FC Barcelona and Bayer 04 Leverkusen. Barça have won four, drawn one and lost two of their last meetings. The last time they met was the 3-1 win at the BayArena last February 14.
- If FC Barcelona knock out Bayer 04 Leverkusen, they will be in the quarter finals of the Champions League for the fifth time in a row.
- Guardiola's side has not lost any of their last 13 Champions League home matches. Their last home defeat dates back to October 2009. Since then they have won eleven and drawn two.
- Barça have won their last nine games at the Camp Nou against German opposition, scoring 24goals and conceding just four. They last lost at home to VfB Sttutgart in the second round of the Champions League in 2009/10.
- Bayer haven't won an away fixture in the Champions League for ten years. Their last win on the road was back in October 2002, when they beat Maccabi Haifa FC 2-0. Since then they have had three draws and nine defeats away from home.
- Leverkusen have lost the first leg at home eighttimes and have never managed to turn the tie around in the second leg.
- Barça have qualified 31 times out of 33 in European competitions when they have won thefirst leg away from home. The last time this happened was against Real Madrid in last season's Champions League semi final.
- Leo Messi is back after missing the last league match through suspension. The Argentinian is the top scorer in the competition with seven goals. He has also had the most shots on goal (20) and the most shots off target as well (21).
- Carles Puyol is the only FC Barcelona player that's one yellow card short of a suspension. If he is booked tonight, he will miss the next Champions League fixture.
- Leverkusen have let in 11 goals in Europe this season, the highest number of any of the teams that qualified for the last sixteen.

FCB

 

[Classik]

20 years of mosaics at the Camp Nou


03/07/2012 11:25
Two decades after the first ever mosaic, Barça have set new standards for this method of expressing support for a football team
Ever since the first mosaic for a game against Real Madrid, a total of 56 mosaics have been created by FC Barcelona fans, including nine finals

Mosaic de l'any 1993


Mosaics in numbers
- 56 mosaics
- 9 times in finals (5 Champions League finals)
- 12 mosaics covering the entire Camp Nou
- 19 times in games against Real Madrid
- All of the mosaics in total have involved the support of 1,990,000 people
- If all of the cards that have been used were puttogether in one line, they'd measure 1,203 kilometres, further than the distance between the Camp Nou and Wembley (1,140 kilometres)
March 7 is the 20th anniversary of the first mosaic created at the Camp Nou . For a league fixture against Real Madrid, 17,000 fans held up cards in the second and third tiers of the North Goal. The background was in the Barcelona and Catalonia colours, and the message featured justone word, 'BARÇA' .
FC Barcelona moved on to set new standards for mosaics in Spanish football stadiums. The idea was imported from Italy , where FCB supporter Jordi Sant, the founder of the Penya BarcelonistaAlmogàvers, had studied the phenomenon and considered the idea of introducing it to the CampNou .
As the year have gone by, FC Barcelona has realised the benefits of such initiatives, which project such a powerful image around the world,and from 2000 the club has taken an active interest in their promotion, often in collaboration with the media.
Fans' role essential
Not one of these mosaics could ever had have become a reality without the help of the Barça fans themselves. But little encouragement is needed. The fans know exactly how they are supposed to hold up their cards when the club anthem plays before the match, or when their team scores a goal. Thanks to their enthusiasm, the image of mosaics has made the Camp Nou more synonymous than ever with football played as a spectacle.
Over the last twenty years, there have been 56 mosaics to express the crowd's support for Barça.Twelve of these have involved the entire Camp Nou , which requires the production of 90,000 cards. Of particular importance was the day of the club's centenary match against Brazil. That day the mosaic not only covered the entire stadium but was also reversible, offering not one but two amazing panoramic images of the Camp Nou .

FCB,

DAVID SAURA