FCBARCELONA.CAT

01.06.2007 11:33

Training for the finalists

David Puig/Miriam Nadal

Barça started their preparations for the Copa Catalunya Final with a training session at la Masia on Friday. All of the players not away on international duty, including some reserve team players, were present.

Training started at 10.30, and involved all the players that featured in Thursday’s successful trip to Tarragona, and who will form the basis for the team that will face Espanyol in next week’s final.

That made seventeen players in all in a session that focused on recuperation following the exertions of the night before, with the only absentee, other than the internationals, being Ludovic Giuly, who worked out in the gym. Thiago Motta trained in isolation and Marc Crosas was given particular attention in the stretching part of the warm-up due to the cramp he suffered during the game in Tarragona.

Víctor Valdés also worked apart from the main group, focusing on particularly goalkeeper centred actions with the goalkeeping coach Juan Carlos Unzué.

Unusual session

The players may not have been the usual ones, but the session started as normal with the usual warm-up drills. One group was made up entirely of reserve team players plus youth player Sergio Busquets, while the other group included the first team and Thaer and Marc Crosas. The warm-ups were followed by circuit training without the ball.

The ball was then introduced to the action, and foot-volley was the unusual choice of activity. In one game, Belletti and Ezquerro took on Giovanni, Orlandi and Jorquera.

The other game was between Lluís Sastre, Thaer and Marc Valiente against Toni Calvo, Víctor Vázquez and Sergio Busquets.