FC Barcelona’s first team trained this Saturday in what was the penultimate session before Valladolid’s visit to the Camp Nou on Sunday (21:00). There was positive news coming from the session as Mascherano and Valdés have both been cleared to play by Barça’s medical team. Mascherano has recovered from a torn ligament in his right knee picked up on April 2nd in the match against Paris Saint-Germain in France. Valdés has been struggling with plantar fasciitis in his left foot for the past few weeks. Both players trained today with the group.

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All the members of FC Barcelona’s first team, including the injured players, will travel this Sunday to Madrid, where Barça will face Atlético Madrid (19:00). Coach Tito Vilanova has decided to bring all of his players because of the possibility of being proclaimed league champions at the Vicente Calderón.

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FC Barcelona continues to prepare for Sunday’s league match against Atlético Madrid (19:00). Tito Vilanova led the training session this Friday with all the available members of the first team squad, plus Juvenil A’s Sergi Samper.

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This morning FC Barcelona had a training session at Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper. Tito Vilanova, who arrived back in Barcelona this morning from New York, had all the available players from the first team at his disposal as well as Juvenil A defender Lucas Gafarot (18).

Both Pedro and Valdés, who missed last week’s clash with Real Betis because of illness and injury respectively, were able to train with the rest of the squad. Forward Pedro Rodríguez (25) has been given the medical green light while goalkeeper Víctor Valdés (31) has yet to receive it.

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Javier Mascherano continues to make progress in his recovery and this Wednesday the player was able to train with his teammates for the first time since his injury against Paris Saint-Germain in France. The Argentine, who tore the internal ligament of his right knee in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, spent part of the session working with the group.

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FC Barcelona’s first team held a session this Sunday at the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper focused on recovery. The starters from Saturday’s match at the San Mamés (2-2), plus Adriano and Messi, did post-match recovery work in the gym and physiotherapy, while the rest of the players trained outside in the rain in Sant Joan Despí. Four players from Barça B joined the first team for today’s session: Joan Angel Roman, Ie, Gus, and Oier.

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FC Barcelona’s first team returned to training this Thursday for the first full session following the 4-0 loss in Munich. All the available players were present at the session, along with Barça B’s Bañuz. The squad began preparing for Saturday’s league match against Athletic Bilbao, in which Barça could mathematically be declared champions depending on the outcome of the Madrid derby (a win against Bilbao would be needed, along with a Madrid loss at the Calderón).

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We’re now at the time of the season when injuries seem to pile up, one after the other, with the recoveries being replaced by freshly received physical damage. The FC Barcelona website reports that the latest to join this conveyor belt of heroic-wounded is José Manuel Pinto with lumbago (lower back pain), and Sergio Busquets, who has a groin injury. More after the break.

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FC Barcelona’s Medical Services have confirmed that during Tuesday’s Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain, Javier Mascherano tore the medial collateral ligament (MCL) of his right knee. The player picked up the injury in the second half, when he collided with Jordi Alba, who fell on top of the Argentine’s leg. Mascherano will be out of action for six weeks. If the player makes a timely recovery, he’ll be back in action before the season comes to a close. Despite the injury, the defender would have missed the return leg of the Champions League quarter final anyway, as he’s suspended.

Picture credit: MIGUEL RUIZ-FCB

In a match full of headlines, one incident seems to have trumped all other match events; Lionel Messi has suffered an injury to his right hamstring at the 42nd minute of the first half. FCBarcelona.com reports that further tests will be carried out on Wednesday to determine the extent of the injury. More after the break.

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Former FC Barcelona defender Gabriel Milito (32) took some time to speak to the media following Barcelona’s incredible comeback against AC Milan. The defender was quoted as saying, “it wouldn’t have been fair for Barcelona to have been left eliminated after one bad game in Milan.” The Argentine drew parallels to the situation as well as praising his compatriots, Lionel Messi and Javier Mascherano.

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Andrés Iniesta, Xavi Harnández, Cesc Fàbregas, Javier Mascherano… all of them declared this week that they believe FC Barcelona will defeat AC Milan on Tuesday.

Barcelona center-back Javier Mascherano (28) spoke to the press on Tuesday to provide some much-needed perspective on the team’s troubling last few weeks. The Argentinian defender insisted that while Barcelona’s current problems are very real, alarmist and apocalyptic reactions to these problems should not forget the larger picture: “It is very easy to only analyse the last fortnight rather than the last five years. If anybody doubts the system, this club’s ideas, they should look back at the last five years and that should clear up any doubts.” Moreover, he emphasized the ever-changing nature of form in football: “It is a very dynamic sport. Three weeks ago it looked like Madrid was in flames and now everything is fine, and a few weeks ago this place was Disney and now it’s a horror story.”

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Speaking to the press on the eve of Argentina’s friendly against Sweden, Barcelona midfielder defender Javier Mascherano had some bittersweet words for the club:

“The worst thing about Barcelona is that one day you’ll have to leave.”

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FC Barcelona defender Javier Mascherano (28) was interviewed after the team’s 5-1 victory over Osasuna on Sunday. Though he’s been in somewhat inconsistent form this season, Mascherano has always approached each game with determination and an astute footballing mind. The official Barcelona report can be found here, and you can read some of El Jefecito‘s thoughts on Osasuna and Real Madrid after the break.

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El Pivote (or The Pivot) is a weekly totalBarça column by Anoop Jethwa about the trials and tribulations of FC Barcelona. From the positives to the negatives, this piece will dive deep into the living fabric that is blaugrana. We welcome your thoughts and feedback in the comments section.

Here is the second instalment of El Pivote’s Christmas Holiday report cards!  The first instalment can be found here.

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It's not Messi that Barça is dependent on, it's these kids.

Xavi places the ball at the corner. His teammates fill the penalty area as he takes a few steps back. Seconds later, the ball is in the net. His perfect hit of the ball made it curve and go straight in. Neither his teammates nor opponents had any chance to get to the ball. The ball was destined for only one place – the goal. It was a true golazo, but nothing unusual for the 9 year old Xavi Pleguezuelo. He plays as a left back for FC Barcelona’s Benjamin A side and it’s not the first time he has curled a ball straight into the goal from a corner kick.

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Six FC Barcelona players have made it to the 40-man shortlist for the UEFA Team of the Year 2012. Select your team of the year through the link after the jump!

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L’Onze Mondial FIFA/FIFPro 2012 is an award that honors the best 11 players during the past year selected by fellow professional footballers globally.

FC Barcelona has 10 total nominees: 5 defenders, 4 midfielders, and 1 forward.  That is the most players of any team in Europe.  Below are the nominees per category:

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El Pivote (or The Pivot) is a weekly totalBarça column by Anoop Jethwa about the trials and tribulations of FC Barcelona.  From the positives to the negatives, this piece will dive deep into the living fabric that is blaugrana.  We welcome your thoughts and feedback in the comments section.

This week on El Pivote we will examine certain defensive woes from the last couple of games.

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 Young football player Gabriel Muniz, hailing from Rio De Janeiro was invited to visit the Camp Nou yesterday.Despite being born with a defect in his feet, Gabriel has shown great endeavour and skill at football.

Marc Bartra (21) tweeted the following about his meeting with Gabriel: “Gabriel, a boy born without feet, visited us. Great to see how happy he is playing with a ball!

Javier Mascherano (28) shared: “Hi everyone! Gabriel Muniz visit us today, an example of life, overcoming and willpower.”

FC Barcelona have announced on Sunday that the club will appeal the red card issued to defender Javier Mascherano by Liga referee Paradas Romero. Romero gave the Argentine a second yellow for an apparent foul on Deportivo attacker Riki when replays indicated that there was minimal contact between the two players. totalBarca will update you on this appeal as more details become available.

Image: I.PAREDES [Sport]

El Pivote (or The Pivot) is a weekly totalBarça column by Anoop Jethwa about the trials and tribulations of FC Barcelona.  From the positives to the negatives, this piece will dive deep into the living fabric that is blaugrana.  We welcome your thoughts and feedback in the comments section.

Just over a week after securing our eight point lead over our greatest rivals, the bunch of games since the previous international break provides us with plenty over which to ponder for the next set of games. This week on El Pivote, we shall discuss the centre back crisis, Montoya’s promotion to the first eleven and the Cesc-Iniesta combination.

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On Friday, there was a new set of South American Qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Both Argentina and Chile played with blaugrana stars on the field.

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This weekend will see Tito’s first clash against rivals Real Madrid in La Liga since he took over the reigns from Josep Guardiola. Whilst Guardiola began with a victory in this fixture, he ended on a defeat with Vilanova watching over his shoulder. Soon after Vilanova was named as Pep’s successor.

Currently we have an eight point cushion from Mourinho’s men, but how decisive will this match be, and what pattern of play can we expect to see from both sides? totalBarça will guide you through some of the realistic, prospective tactical battles.

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Speaking to the press after their 0-2 victory in Lisbon, Cesc, Alexis, Jordi Alba and Mascherano had a number of comments about their second win in Champions League Group G. A number of players also took to Twitter to make comments and offer support for Puyol. Find out what they had to say after the jump.

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Javier Mascherano shared his thoughts with the press today concerning the upcoming Champions League game, the important week ahead, and the injury of team-mate Thiago Alcántara. Read on for the details!

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When Xavi’s strike against Granada hit the back of the net on the weekend, the sense of joy was almost matched by the sense of relief that Barcelona would go on to maintain its 100% start to the La Liga season.

With a trip to Madrid’s latest conquerors, Sevilla, next up for Tito’s men, followed by an away match at Benfica and then El Gran Clásico, here at totalBarça we will focus on what our Mister has to analyse ahead of this epic week.

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International friendlies are scheduled this midweek before the start of the new La Liga season, and 11 Barça players will be fulfilling their national team duties.

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It seems like Javier Mascherano has been with us for a long time, but it’s only been two years. I was one of the many culés that, after his debut against Hércules in 2010, thought, “why did we sign him?“. His very first game as a Barça player wasn’t as fortunate as the rest of his appearances with the team. He was sent off and the team got a disappointing defeat at home.

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