FCBARCELONA.CAT

18.10.2008 13:40

Hleb’s back; Xavi out

www.fcbarcelona.cat

Alexander Hleb is back in the squad for the game against Athletic Bilbao, while Xavi Hernández is sidelined despite an improvement in his hamstring injury.

Pep Guardiola has called up 18 players for this Sunday’s game at San Mamés. One of them is Alexander Hleb , who got injured on 13 September and was declared fit again only last Thursday. Another is Touré Yaya, who returned from international duty with a slight knee strain but has recovered well. Sylvinho is also in the squad for the first time in the League this season while Víctor Sánchez returns to the first team after a month away.

By contrast Xavi Hernández has been left out of this Sunday’s clash as a precautionary measure despite making good progress with the hamstring problem in his right thigh. Others missing are Gudjohnsen, Pedro and Milito who are injured, and Martín Cáceres and Jorquera who Guardiola decided not to call up.

Training in the rain at Camp Nou

This Saturday morning the team trained before leaving for Bilbao. The session was behind closed doors at Camp Nou and for much of the time took place in a torrential downpour.