Barcelona captain returns to lineup
BARCELONA:Barcelona captain Carles Puyol has received medical clearance to return to play and has been called up to the bench for Saturday’s Spanish league match at Real Sociedad. The Spain defender is listed Friday in coach Pep Guardiola’s 21-player squad and could play for the first time since May after recovering from knee surgery. Gerard Pique remains sidelined with a calf injury and Guardiola had to survive without his favored defensive pairing in the season’s 5-0 opening win over Villarreal. Guardiola used a 3-4-3 formation that highlighted Barcelona’s fast-passing midfield to overcome Villarreal, a system that allowed newcomers Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez to get on the scoresheet. (Agencies)
Jose predicts better Real this season
LISBON: Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho says last season was his best league run ever despite not winning the title, and he expects to do even better in this campaign. The former Porto, Chelsea and Inter Milan coach says no other team he coached had ever won so many points, recorded so many victories or scored so many goals. Real Madrid finished second to Barcelona but won the Copa del Rey and reached the semifinals of the Champions League. Mourinho said in an interview with Portuguese news agency Lusa published Thursday that his team is playing better this season. However, he acknowledged the danger of injury setbacks because he has a squad of just 21 outfield players after cautious transfer spending. (Agencies)
Messi to resume Spanish liga action
MADRID: Spanish football returns to action this weekend following last week’s break for international matches. FC Barcelona kick off the round of games with a trip to play Real Sociedad in San Sebastian. Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola will hope that players such as Lionel Messi and Javier Mascherano will have recovered after travelling to India with the Argentinean national side. Guardiola will also hope to have Carles Puyol available after injury, while the game could see former Arsenal teammates Cesc Fabregas and Carlos Vela up against each other for the first time. Barcelona won their first match of the season 5-0 against Villarreal a fortnight ago, while Madrid scored six in Zaragoza. Should they both cruise to victory this weekend, it will only raise more doubts about the unequal share of television money, which sees both clubs receive over 100 million euros more per season than any of their rivals. (Agencies)