FCBARCELONA.CAT

25.08.2008 13:05

The first team is already in Krakow

www.fcbarcelona.cat

The group trained by Pep Guardiola is already in Krakow, where tomorrow, Tuesday they will confront Wisla in the second leg of the Champions’ League preliminary round (8.45p.m.).

Barça’s first team landed on Polish soil at 1.13p.m., ten minutes ahead of schedule. The Barça expedition, led by Joan Laporta along with Rafael Yuste, Albert Perrín, Joseph Antón Colomer, Jordi Torrent and Xavier Bagués, members of the Board of Directors and also the technical secretary Txiki Begiristain left for their destination at around 10.30a.m. from ‘El Prat’ airport. Once in Krakow, where the temperature is at 20 degrees, the group went directly to their team hotel.

Scheduled plan

In the afternoon, at 6.45p.m. to be precise, there is a press conference scheduled in which Pep Guardiola and Samuel Eto’o will take part. Immediately afterwards, at 7.30p.m., the squad will train in Wisla’s Henrik Reyman stadium. The local team, on the other hand, have scheduled a press conference for 5.15p.m. and will start training at 6.00p.m.

Despite the comfort of the 4-0 achieved in the first leg at the Camp Nou, the Barcelona manager called up all his players except for Messi , who arrived in Barcelona on Sunday having won the gold medal in Peking, and Víctor Sánchez. Dani Alves, with the doctors go ahead, is the most notable novelty to the call up list, along with Rubén Miño, the reserves goal keeper.

One precedent

This is not the first game FC Barcelona has played in Krakow. In the only other game between Barça and Wisla, in the 2001/02 season, an eliminatory just like this year, Barça won 3-4. In the return leg the Barcelona team beat its rival by 1-0 in the Camp Nou.

Leader in the Polish League

In the Polish League Wisla Krakow is at the top of the group on its own with nine points, having won the three games played to date. Arka and Ruch follow them, with 7 points each. Their most dangerous rival is Legia Warsaw, who is ninth at the moment with only four points.