FC Barcelona vs Espanyol Preview

FC Barcelona would be hoping to put the draw against Betis past them with an emphatic performance against city rivals Espanyol. They have to do that without their influential midfielder Andres Iniesta. Guardiola has promised to unleash Messi from the bigining against Espanyol; Messi started from the bench in Barca's last two games. Espanyol at this moment lies at the bottom of the table and have a good chance of getting relegated. THe fact that they have to play Real Madrid and Villareal after this does not help their cause also. Espanyol keeper Kameni is very doubtful for thsi match and has to pass a late fitness test. The last time these two teams met was for the Copa Del Rey, whereh eventaually Barcelona emerged victorious. It is also to be seen whether Puyol would start the match or Guardiola would prefer to rest him till the match against Lyon. As in the case of all home matches this season, Guardiola has not named his squad.

Valdes is expected to start at the goal after a good performance against Betis last weekend. Alves, Marquez, Pique and Abidal are expected to form the defensive cover. Alves had a bad game last week and he would be hoping to compensate for that. The midifeld would definitely feature Xavi and Toure. The third midfielder would be a toss up between Busquets and Gudjohnsen, I expect Gudjohnsen to be picked. The front trio is not going to change withe Messi, Eto and Henry. It is to be seen how the Nou Camp faithfuls react to Eto's antics recently. This is a must win game for FC Barcelona, we cannot give anymore glimpse of hope to Real Madrid. I expect Barca to win this by 4-1.

Spending Cap, Is It Fair?

UEFA president Michel Platini has called upon the European Parliament to make Football a special case and allow him to introduce spending cap in the sport. Platini has already spoken against Manchester City's astronomical bid for Kaka and raised the issue again in the Parliament. But for all his passionate cries, the free market guys in the Parliament are not going to fall into Platini's demands. The European Club Association(ECA) earlier has demanded to set a cap of 50-60% of their revenue as spending cap. What a noble idea, you might think! But hold on that may not be as noble as you think. All these cries and yelling for salary cap and spending cap came after one specific event in the last year, the acquisition of Manchester City by Abu Dhabi United Group. I have wrote an earlier article about the merits and demerits of it; Have a look - Million Dollar Clubs. This is the age of Russian billionaires and Middle East Oil tycoons who are ready to pump huge amount into the clubs. But why then there is huge cry when Manchester City went after Kaka; why nobody raised a question apart from Manchester United when Real Madrid went after Ronaldo in a similar fashion and still does? Why no one complained when Chelsea was taken from being an average team to an extra ordinary team by the wealth of its Russian owner? That's where the apartheid in ECA lies.

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Iniesta Out for Two Weeks

FC Barcelona would be missing their instrumental mid-fielder for two weeks. Andres Iniesta has been sidelined after suffering an harmstring injury. The doctors have advised him for complete rest for two weeks. This is sad as he was coming back to his best. His last two matches - against Betis and against England he was coming back to full force. He is definite to miss the first leg of Champions League encounter against Lyon. The best we can hope is to see him action against Mallorca in the Copa Del Rey second leg, which will be held on March 04. But that all depend on how fast he recovers; then again Pep may not risk him in that match and wait till he is completely fit. As far as Barca is concerned - we missed him during the crucial phase in December. But we came through it in flying colours. Pep could use anyone of Keita, Gudjohnsen and Busquets in the midfield; but they will not be able to substitute the skill of Iniesta.

Eto has been stalling the renewal of contract for sometime. Now the plot gets thicker with Manchester City and AC Milan reportedly interested in signing him. This is something which Eto wanted, as this will give him more bargaining power with the club. But this could also harm Eto's interest. Txiki Begiristain , the sporting director at Barca has reportedly made a statement that at Barca anyone can score. He also made it clear that their initail priority is to extend Eto deal; but they are well prepared if that falls through. Eto could be a bit upset at the treatment metted out by Guardiola in the beginig of season, but it is hard to believe that he would like to move out of Nou Camp. Where will he get a more perfect team to complement his goal poaching skills? But these development will force Barca to go after Benzema and Villa with more determination, and in the end Eto could be the loser.