Barça take on Inter Milan at Camp Nou tonight in this year’s Joan Gamper match. The pre-match celebrations have been cancelled as a mark of respect for Antonio Puerta, and 10% of the game’s revenue will go to heart research. Traditionally this a game which gives the crowd a chance to see the new summer signings so expect to see Henry, Abidal, Touré and Milito all in the starting line-up. Keep reading →

Sevilla’s defender Antonio Puerta died today in hospital. He suffered a heart attack during the first half of Sevilla’s 4-1 win over Getafe on Saturday, but despite being resuscitated by the Sevilla medical team he collapsed again in the dressing room. It’s a terribly tragic way for the new season to begin. He was 22 years old.

There has been some criticism in the press of the first two substitutions that Frank Rijkaard made in yesterday’s match against Racing. In the 62nd minute Messi was replaced by Henry, and some are suggesting that it would have been better to take off Eto’o or Ronaldinho as they weren’t doing anything. Keep reading →

Ronaldinho will no longer occupy a non-european place as today he swore on the Spanish constitution to become officially a Spanish citizen. Giovani dos Santos is also expected to gain Spanish citizenship in the next few days. This means that Barça will have only Eto’o and Touré as non-EU players.

Football Club Barcelona’s attempt to regain La Liga got off to a poor start this evening with a 0-0 draw against Racing Santander in the Nuevo Sardinero. Thierry Henry began on the bench but after coming on for Leo Messi he almost stole a victory for Barça when he hit the post in the 86th minute. Keep reading →

In just under six hours, Football Club Barcelona kick off their new league season against Racing Santander in the Nuevo Sardinero. Barça will be looking for their first three points of the season to catch Madrid and Sevilla who both won last night. It will be very interesting to see which of the four ‘fantasticos’  starts on the bench. My feeling is that it will be Thierry Henry. Keep reading →

Well, I’m back from my holidays feeling refreshed and looking forward to tomorrow’s game (I’ll do a preveiw tomorrow). Not much seems to have happened while I was away, but Juliano Belletti has signed for Chelsea and Maxi Lopez has gone to Russia to play for FC Moscow. Keep reading →

Yes it’s that time of year when the body needs a good rest. Tomorrow I will be away on my hols and FCBnews will be down to a minimum service. I will try to find time to visit an internet cafe to do some updates, but until I get there I won’t know how convenient it will be. I will be back for the start of the season when normal service will be resumed. Apologies for any inconvenience. Visca el Barça.

Given that the team had to stay in Hong Kong anyway, Frank Rijkaard has agreed to the game with Mission Hills being played tomorrow at 14.30 local time (08.30 in Spain). Better remember to set the alarm clock! The authorities in Hong Kong have called a state of emergency due to the imminent typhoon which is expected to hit Hong Kong today at 22.00 (16.00 in Spain).

Today’s match in Hong Kong against the Mission Hills Invitation XI has been called off due to a typhoon which is due to hit Hong Kong today. Barça are going to spend an extra day in Hong Kong and the game may take place tomorrow, Saturday, but this has yet to be confirmed. Keep reading →