The Spanish mentor is more than pleased at the fact that Eric Abidal was offered a contract renewal by Barcelona even though the player had health issues.
Guardiola voiced his opinion regarding the matter and expressed that there are fewer clubs which have as much love for its players as Barcelona.
He stressed that the fact that Abidal was allowed to renew his contract outlines the ‘greatness’ of La Blaugrana.
The Catalan trainer emphasized that the current Spanish Champions could have decided against offering the French defender an extension as he was suffering from health issues, but chose to keep him, considering the services he provided to the club.
It was only recently discovered that Eric Abidal would require a liver transplant, which would keep the player out of action for an indefinite amount of time. In fact, there are doubts that the Frenchman may never be able to compete in first-class football
again.
The French international was diagnosed with a liver tumour last season, which was taken as a shock by the Blaugrana faithful.
Even though the veteran defender had the tumour removed by March of 2011, he had to remain sidelined until the conclusive stages of the season with the possibility of having his liver removed in the foreseeable future.
It was more than impressive to note that his club stuck by him during this difficult period and the player received a great amount of respect. So much was the support for the player that he was allowed to lift the Champions League trophy which Barca managed
to win in last year’s edition of the tournament.
This season, as the defender’s current contract with the Catalan outfit neared its end, he was offered a new contract by Barcelona despite the knowledge that his condition could deteriorate.
While addressing reporters, Guardiola was quoted as saying:
"For http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Barcelona-c38604 to renew with Abidal when they knew he would need a liver transplant shows the greatness of this club. But the main thing for Abidal now is to recover. It happened to him, Tito [Vilanova, Barca assistant coach], and many other people. He knows
he has us by his side.
"Abidal will have to fight on his own, but we'll be there. The bigger the difficulty, the more love and care we should give."
Eric Abidal was brought over to the Nou Camp in 2007 from French Ligue 1 outfit, Olympic Lyonnais, and has been able to make an impressive impact at the Catalan capital.
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