Friday training session at Ciutat Esportiva

With the Champions League visit to Minsk now behind them, FC Barcelona have their minds firmly set on this weekend’s league trip to Sporting Gijón. At El Molinón on Sunday at 20.00, Guardiola’s side finishes its first marathon of the season before the international break.

Barca injury updates

Alexis Sanchez
Alexis Sanchez will travel to Santiago de Chile in the next few days, where he will continue his recovery programme from the muscle injury he picked up earlier this month.

Andres Iniesta
Andrés Iniesta, who is still recovering from injury, appeared on the field and joined his team mates for some of the session.

Ibrahim Afellay
Ibrahim Afellay will be operated on for his injured anterior left cruciate knee ligament by Dr. Cugat and Dr. Pruna next Monday October 3rd at 14.00.

AnimsAlexis-Iniesta-Afellay

Nine Barca player on the Del Bosque's team

The Spanish manager has announced his squad for the European Championship qualifiers against the Czech Republic and Scotland. There are nine Barça players in his team.

Spain’s list: Iker Casillas, José Manuel Reina, Víctor Valdés; Álvaro Arbeloa, Sergio Ramos, Carles Puyol, Gerard Piqué, Raúl Albiol, Jordi Alba; Xabi Alonso, Sergio Busquets, Santiago Cazorla, Thiago Alcántara, Xavi Hernández, Javi Martínez, Cesc Fábregas; David Villa, David Silva, Fernando Llorente, Fernando Torres, Pedro Rodríguez, Álvaro Negredo, Juan Mata

Regarding the last call-up, Barça B’s Martín Montoya returns to the U-21 team and the injured Andrés Iniesta has been left out of the current squad. One new face is Valencia’s Jordi Alba, who was formed in Barça’s youth teams.

As for Spain’s U-21 squad, Luis Milla has called four blaugrana for their match with Croatia: Bartra, Montoya, Planas and Sergi Roberto.
Apart from the Spanish contingent, some of Barça’s other stars will be on international duty over the next two weeks. Mascherano and Messi will both be present in the Argentina national team, while Eric Abidal will join up with the French national team. (totalbarca.com)

Lionel Messi equals Ladislau Kubala's record

This Wednesday, in Minsk, Leo Messi equalled the record of one of the legends of FC Barcelona, Ladislao Kubala. Both have scored 194 goals in official matches.

LadisLEO Messi

The following are some of the previous records beaten by Messi for FC Barcelona:

16/01/2010: Goal number 100 in an official match.

27/02/2010: Overtakes, with 71 goals, the number of goals by Ronaldinho in the League.

01/05/2010: Reaches Kluivert as the tenth leading scorer in club history (122 goals).

21/08/2010: reaches 130 goals, the same as Eto'o and Rivaldo.

19/09/2010: Reaches fifth top scorer for Barça in the League, level with Kluivert (90 goals).

20/10/2010: Messi equals Rivaldo as top international scorer ever (31 goals).

03/11/2010: Goal number 100 since Josep Guardiola took over as Barça Manager (100 goals in 117 games with Guardiola).

13/11/2010: Scores his 30th two goal haul, and reaches fourth place in the list of top scorers for Barça in the League, with 98 goals, one more than Mariano Martín (97).

20/11/2010: Goal 100 in the league.

24/11/2010: Goal 150 in official matches.

29/01/2011: Becomes the third top scorer for Barça in the League with 109 goals, overtaking Eto'o (108).

28/05/2011: Scores his 53rd goal in a single season, a record in the Spanish League, shared with Cristiano Ronaldo.

24/09/2011: Goal 150 with Josep Guardiola as manager, in 192 matches.

28/09/2011: Reaches Ladislao Kubala, with 194 goals, as the second top scorer in the history of the Club.

Messi after scored against Bate Borisov

The Highlight ; Bate Borisov 0-5 FC Barcelona

Match Result ; Bate Borisov 0-5 FC Barcelona

Barça destroyed BATE Borisov with goals from Messi (2), Pedro, Villa, and an own goal, and came away with their first win in this season’s Champions League. Messi has drawn level with Kubala as the second top scorer in the history of the Club.

Barça didn’t leave any room for surprise in Minsk, where BATE Borissov play their home games in the Champions League. The Belarusian Champion belied their fame as an offensive team, and handed the initiative to Barça from the start. Barça had a lot to play for following the draw against AC Milan at the Camp Nou, and decided the game with 3 goals before the break. In the second half, also totally controlled by Guardiola’s players, Messi equalled Kubala’s record, and Barça equalled their biggest away win in the Competition.

GOALSCORERS:FC BATE Borisov:-
FC Barcelona: Volodko (own goal, 19′), Pedro (22′), Messi (38′), Messi (55′), Villa (90′)
LINEUPS:
FC BATE Borisov: Gutor, Bordachev, Filipenko, Simic, Kontsevoi, Volodko, Bressan, Olekhnovich, Baga, Rudik, and Kezman
FC Barcelona: Valdés, Alves, Mascherano, Puyol, Abidal, Keita, Thiago, Xavi, Pedro, Messi, and Villa
SUBSTITUTES:
FC BATE Borisov: Chesnovski, Radkov, Likhtarovich, Gordeychuk, Aleksiyan, Kurlovich, and Skavysh
FC Barcelona: Pinto, Maxwell, Adriano, Piqué, Fontàs, Busquets, and Cesc
SUBSTITUTIONS:
FC BATE Borisov: Skavysh on for Kezman (56′), Aleksiyan on for Rudik (60′), Kurlovich on for Bressan (82′)
FC Barcelona: Fabregas on for Xavi (59′), Adriano on for Abidal (61′), Maxwell on for Pedro (69′)
CAUTIONS:
FC BATE Borisov: Simic (81′)
FC Barcelona: Dani Alves (77′)

Man Of The Match: Lionel Messi

Next Match ; FC BATE Borisov v FC Barcelona

UEFA Champions League Group Stage fixture 2
Horodskiy Stadium

Barça visit BATE Borissov in the second game of the Champions League (20.45, GolT and R@dio Barça) in search of a very important victory, following the draw against AC Milan. Alexis, Iniesta, and Afellay, are all out through injury.

The current Champion didn’t exactly get off to a good start in this year's Champions League. In the first match they were unlucky to draw with AC Milan at the Camp Nou (2-2). That's why the second game of the competition on Wednesday takes on great significance for the classification in the group (at present all four teams have one point).

So, Barça are taking on BATE Borissov for the vital 3 points. The match will take place at the Dynamo Stadium in Minsk, where the Belarusians play their games in the top European competition.

Barça’s different formations
With institutional issues behind them, the ball will now do the talking. Barça go into the game with a lot of confidence after the recent 5-0 win over Athletico Madrid. In that match we saw Barça alternating their formation (3-4-3 and 4-3-3) which the European Champions are doing regularly this season. Thus, the line-up for this game is anybody’s guess.

The only thing certain is the absence through injury of Alexis Sanchez, Andres Iniesta, and Ibrahim Afellay.

Messi chasing Kubala’s goal record
A certain starter fort Barça, Lionel Messi has his first opportunity of becoming the second top scorer in the history of the Club. With the brilliant hat-trick against Athletico Madrid he’s only two goals behind the number of goals scored by the legendary Ladislau Kubala (194). (fcbarcelona.cat)





Line Up Prediction;

BATE Borisov : Gutor; Baga, Simic, Filipenko, Bordachev; Volodko, Bressan, Gordeichuk, Olekhnovich; Rudik; Kezman.
FC Barcelona :  Valdes; Puyol, Pique, Abidal, Dani Alves; Busquets, Thiago, Xavi; Fabregas, Villa, Messi.

Prediction: 1-3

Barca arrive in Belarus

The first team has arrived in Belarus, where they play their second Champions League group match against BATE Borisov on Wednesday evening. The squad touched down at Minsk airport at 13.25 CET (one hour more in Belarus).

1960s legend ‘Chus’ Pereda dies

Former FCB player Jesús Pereda has died today at the age of 73. He represented the club from 1961 to 1969, playing 316 games and scoring 110 goals.

Today is a sad day for FC Barcelona. The legendary ‘Chus’ Pereda has died at the age of 73 in Barcelona. The midfielder will never be forgotten at the Camp Nou, where he played for eight seasons.

Star for a decade
Jesús “Chus” Pereda was an amazing player. He was the central playmaker at the club throughout the sixties, forming an extraordinary midfield along with Josep Maria Fusté. He combined skills, strength and excellent shooting to become not just a great player, but also a great person, famous for his happy, open character.

316 games and 110 goals
Pereda was born in Medina de Pomar (Burgos) on June 15, 1938. When he was a child, his family moved to the Basque Country, where he started playing football for Indautxu(1955-57). He was later at Real Madrid (1957-58); Valladolid (1958-59) and Sevilla (1959-61). In 1961 he signed for FC Barcelona, and was there for eight seasons, scoring 110 goals in 316 matches. He won one Fairs Cup (1965-66) and two Spanish Cups (1962-63 and 1967-68) before ending his career at Sabadell (1969-70) and Mallorca (1970-72). He later went into management and coached the Spanish national side at various youth levels.

Hero of 1964 European Championship
He won 15 caps for Spain, and appeared at the 1964 European Championship, where he scored the first goal in the final against the USSR and also laid on the famous winner for Marcelino. (fcbarcelona.cat)

20 players to travel to Belarus

Josep Guardiola has named 20 players for the game on Wednesday at BATE Borisov. These are the 18 fit first team players plus Isaac Cuenca and Jonathan dos Santos from the reserves.

Monday's training

 The Squad:
Valdés, Pinto, Alves, Piqué, Fàbregas, Puyol, Xavi, Villa, Messi, Thiago, Mascherano, Keita, Sergio Busquets, Pedro, Maxwell, Adriano, Abidal, Fontàs, Cuenca and Dos Santos.

UNSTOPPABLE MESSI!

Once again another Leo Messi exhibition. With the three goals he scored against Athletico Madrid, the Argentine star has now scored 192 goals for Barça, just two behind the legendary Hungarian striker Laszi Kubala, who scored 194 in total.

He’s only 24, but Messi’s are the stats of a veteran. He’s about to catch Kubala and is increasingly closer to reaching the top scorer in the history of the Club, Cesar Rodriguez (235). In an exclusive interview on Barça TV’s “El Marcador”, Messi expressed his desire to continue making history at Barça: "I’m pretty calm about it. I just take it a game at a time, but obviously I'm very excited about becoming top scorer. Many years have gone by and it’s still the same player [referring to Kubala]. Hopefully I can beat his stats. I want to continue breaking records here".

"I don’t think about the milestones ahead" The great form Messi is in is not making him think about the challenges ahead, except team ones "We have to take it all bit by bit, without thinking about milestones. I think the most important thing for this team is to keep winning, and keep winning titles for us and the fans. This is far more important than any individual prize or statistic".

Athletico Madrid, his favourite victim
He’s already scored 14 goals against Athletico in the League, and they’re his favourite victim, ahead of Seville (10). Yesterday he scored a hat-trick, the eleventh of his career as a professional footballer, and his third against Athletico Madrid. As tradition dictates, the Argentinian took the match-ball home with him: "I’ll find a place to put it, alongside the other balls I have" said the striker. It was also his 150th goal in the Guardiola era.

New formation
Messi admits that they still have to adapt to the 3-4-3 system that Guardiola has used recently, but he’s pretty excited about it: "We feel pretty comfortable with it. There are some things we still aren’t doing well, just like with the previous system, but that's OK. It takes time and practice. We still aren’t totally used to it. Personally I'm pretty happy, because up front we have more space and we can link up better with the midfield players, and receive more passes".

Messi: ''I want to continue breaking records".

The Highlights ; FC Barcelona 5-0 Atletico Madrid

Match Result ; FC Barcelona 5-0 Atletico Madrid

Barcelona and Lionel Messi were in thrilling form as they thumped Atletico Madrid 5-0 at Camp Nou to return to winning ways.
The Argentine attacker scored a hat-trick, and a further effort from David Villa plus a Miranda own goal sealed an excellent evening's work for the Catalan giant.
The home side began the match without defenders Carlos Puyol or Gerard Pique, along with Alexis Sanchez and Andres Iniesta, who are bothe injured.  However, it was Atletico Madrid which threatened early as Tiago's fourth-minute shot beat Victor Valdes but was denied by the crossbar.
Barcelona was completing a shuffle of passes on the pitch when it found the first goal in the ninth minute through David Villa. The Spanish international brought the ball down with his chest on the left side of the penalty area and tucked it in the bottom right corner.
The home side netted its second only six minutes later with an own goal after Lionel Messi attempted to touch the ball past the keeper resulting in a deflection off the knee of Atletico defender Miranda.Barcelona continued to dominate the game with a flourish of runs and passes when Messi grabbed his first and Barcelona’s third of the night in the 26th minute. A throw-in resulted in a simple round of passes that found Messi dashing towards goal on the left side, beating a defender, and placing the ball in the bottom corner of the net.
Cesc Fabregas nearly found his first of the night in the 41st minute after an attempted chip over the Atletico keeper just outside the box, only for the ball to graze the crossbar and go behind goal.
Barcelona began the second half in similar fashion with Gerard Pique being brought into the match.  The home side created a chance in the 53rd minute, with Cesc Fabregas feeding the ball to Messi in the box only for the Belgian keeper Thibaut Courtois to make another save.
The hosts kept much possession of the ball when they had created another chance in the 67th minute after Lionel Messi left David Villa one on one with the keeper, but the striker could not finish.
Barcelona grabbed its fourth of the night in the 78th minute after a moment of brilliance from Lionel Messi, who received the ball from Dani Alves on the right and strolled past three Atletico defenders to pass the ball into the goal.
The little Argentine then grabbed a hat-trick in stoppage time after making a run down the left and putting the ball between the keeper's legs. (goal.com)

GOALSCORERS:
FC Barcelona: Villa (9′), Miranda (own goal, 15′), Messi (26′, 78′, 90+)
Atletico Madrid: -

LINE-UPS:
FC Barcelona: Valdés, Alves, Mascherano, Abidal, Busquets, Xavi, Thiago, Cesc, Pedro, Villa and Messi
Atletico Madrid: Courtois, Godin, Miranda, Lopez, Perea, Suarez, Gabi, Tiago, Diego, Falcao and Reyes
SUBSTITUTES:
FC Barcelona: Pinto, Maxwell, Fontàs, Adriano, Keita, Puyol and Piqué
Atletico Madrid: Kasmirski, Juanfran, Turan, Adrian, Asenjo, Salvio, Soto
SUBSTITUTIONS:
FC Barcelona: Pique on for Busquets (54′), Keita on for Fabregas (72′), Maxwell on for Abidal (81′)
Atletico Madrid: Turan on for Suarez (45′), Salvio on for Reyes (45′), Adrian on for Tiago (79′)
CAUTIONS:
FC Barcelona: Pique (71′)
Atletico Madrid: Perea (72′)

Man Of The Match : Lionel Messi (FCB)

Next Match ; FC Barcelona v Atletico Madrid

La Liga Jornada 6, Sat 24 Sept, 22.00.

After four matchdays so far in La Liga, resurgence seems to be the word of the month for a lot of teams. Teams such as Real Sociedad, Levante, and Racing Santander now refuse to just succumb to their opponent’s much more illustrious name and chose to fight back. When facing a more talented opponent, now these teams play cautious and counter-attacking football without committing too many people up front. This evolution of Spanish game is probably owed to the fact that Messi and Ronaldo were breaking goalscoring records left and right which in turn brought a lot of question to La Liga’s defensive quality.
The opening day big wins of Real Madrid and Barcelona, in addition to the discussion over disparity in TV rights money, seemed to have brought a sense of dissension amongst the other 18 teams in the league. Valencia, Atletico Madrid, and Real Betis are enjoying great success so far due to their team and manager quality, and if we add Villarreal, Sevilla, Malaga and Athletic Bilbao to the mix then we can see how high the level of competition is this season in La Liga. Three players are in the top scorer spot: Lionel Messi, Soldado, and the new Atletico man Radamel Falcao with 5 goals each. (totalbarca.com)

Starting Line - up predicition :

 FC Barcelona ; Valdes, Puyol, Mascherano, Abidal, Dani Alves, Busquets, Xavi, Fabregas, Pedro, Villa, Messi.
Atletico Madrid : Coutois, Silva, Perea, Dominguez, Filipe, Koke, Assuncao, Gabi, Turan, Reyes, Falcao.

Prediction :
Barca 4-1 Atletico.

FC Barcelona 2011-12 Fixtures

FC Barcelona 2011-12 UEFA Champions League Fixtures

Season 2011-12

Jugadors del FC Barcelona

Manager and Coaching Staff

Transfer In :

Alexis Sanchez (from Udinese) =

26 Million Euro + 11,5 variables.

Francesc Fabregas (from Arsenal) =

29 Million Euro + 11 variables.

Transfer Out :

Bojan Krkic (to AS Roma)

Jeffren Suarez (to Sporting Lisbon)

Gabriel Milito (to Independiente)

Oriol Romeu (to Chelsea)

Visca Barcaaaaaa....!!

Visca El Barca y Visca Catalunya

Futbol Club Barcelona (Catalan pronunciation: [fubˈbɔɫ ˈkɫub bərsəˈɫonə], Spanish: [ˈfuðβol kluβ βarθeˈlona]), (often known simply as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça (Catalan: [ˈbarsə], Spanish: [ˈbarsa])), is a Spanish professional football club, based in Barcelona, Spain. They play in La Liga, and is one of the only three clubs to have never been relegated, along with Athletic Bilbao and rival Real Madrid. They are the current Spanish and European football champions.

Founded as Foot-Ball Club Barcelona in 1899 by a group of Swiss, English, and Spanish footballers led by Joan Gamper, the club has become a symbol of Catalan culture and Catalanism, hence the motto “Més que un club” (English: More than a club). The official Barça anthem is the “Cant del Barça” written by Jaume Picas and Josep Maria Espinàs. Unlike many other football clubs, the supporters own and operate Barcelona. It is the world’s second richest football club in terms of revenue, with an annual turn-over of €398 million. The club holds a long-standing rivalry with Real Madrid, and matches between the two teams are referred to as “El Clásico”.

FC Barcelona is the second most successful club in Spanish football in terms of overall trophies, having won twenty-one La Liga titles, a record twenty-five Spanish Cups, nine Spanish Super Cups, and two League Cups. It is also one of most successful clubs in European football, having won eleven UEFA competitions. It is the only European club to have played continental football every season since 1955. In 2009, Barcelona became the first club in Spain to win the treble consisting of La Liga, Copa del Rey, and the Champions League. That same year, it also became the first football club ever to win six out of six competitions in a single year, thus completing the sextuple, comprising the aforementioned treble and the Spanish Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. In the 2010–11 season, the club won La Liga and beat Manchester United in the Champions League Final 3–1.

The history of Futbol Club Barcelona goes from the football club’s founding in 1899 and up to current time. FC Barcelona, also known simply as “Barcelona” and familiarly as “Barça”, is based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The team was founded in 1899 by a group of Swiss, English and Spanish footballers led by Joan Gamper. The club played amateur football until 1910 in various regional competitions. In 1910, the club participated in their first of many European competitions, and has since amassed ten UEFA trophies and a sextuple. In 1928, Barcelona co-founded La Liga, the top-tier in Spanish football, along with a string of other clubs. As of 2010, Barcelona has never been relegated from La Liga, a record they share with Athletic Bilbao and arch-rival Real Madrid.

The history of Barcelona has often been political. Though it is a club created and run by foreigners, Barcelona gradually became a club associated with Catalan values. In Spain’s transition to autocracy in 1925, Catalonia became increasingly hostile towards the central government in Madrid. The hostility enhanced FC Barcelona’s image as a focal point for Catalonism, and when Francisco Franco banned the use of the Catalan language, the stadium of FC Barcelona became one of the few places the people could express their dissatisfaction. The Spanish transition to democracy in 1978 has not dampened the club’s image of Catalan pride. In the 2000s–a period of sporting success in the club and an increased focus on Catalan players–club officials have openly called for Catalonia to become an independent state.