Barcelona duo suffer injuries
La Liga giants Barcelona have been dealt a double blow after Carles Puyol and Xavier Hernández Creus (‘Xavi’) suffered injuries against Racing Santander in the first game of the new league campaign.
Manager Pep Guardiola had named both in his starting line-up for the match, but he was forced to make a change before kick-off after Puyol felt a twinge in his left calf muscle during the warm up. As a precaution, Guardiola brought in Gerard Pique to join Eric Abidal in central defence.
Xavi started the match but was taken off at half-time after he suffered some discomfort to the Achillies tendon of his left leg. The 2010 FIFA World Cup winner was replaced by Pedro Rodriguez as a precautionary measure, but the extent of the injury is not yet known.
'Important players'
After the match, which Barca won 3-0 thanks to goals from Lionel Messi, Andreas Iniesta and new boy David Villa, Guardiola revealed that he had wanted to protect Puyol and Xavi. He told the club’s official website that: “We cannot lose such important players and prefer to protect them. We would rather that they miss one day rather than suffer an injury that would keep them out for longer.”
The injuries, though apparently minor, will cause Spain coach Vincente del Bosque some concern ahead of the world champions kicking-off the defence of their European championship against Lichtenstein in a UEFA 2012 European Championship qualifying match this weekend. The injuries may cause Puyol and Xavi, who have both been named in the squad for the tie, to miss out on the match as well as an international friendly against Argentina next week.
The pair have been integral to Barcelona’s success over the past several seasons. They have won back-to-back La Liga titles and were permanent fixtures in the team which won six trophies in 2009.
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