David Villa ready but philosophical about his FC Barcelona place

Everyone concerned with Barcelona is desperate to have David villa back playing in every game, but the player himself knows that things are not as simple as that. The Spanish international striker has just appeared for the first time in a Spain shirt in eight months after his injury.

Villa acknowledges that he would probably be back playing regularly for most teams, as he feels fit and ready, but reminds the public that the two teams he is trying to get in to, Spain and Barcelona, are two of the best teams in the world with strong competition for places.

The 30-year old knows he has the backing of everyone at the Camp Nou and all of the fans, but he recognises that he must work his way back in to the team with patience until he has regained his full match fitness. Villa knows also that, unless he is injured, Leo Messi is the first name on the team sheet and he will not be replacing him.

The striker is willing to play in any position and has done so before, whether as part of a front three, two or as a lone striker or even winger. Barca will be spoilt for choice with Pedro looking vastly improved this season and with Alexis and Tello starting to look world class.

Barcelona begin their Champion’s League assault against Spartak Moscow

Barcelona are determined to regain the Champion’s League trophy they lost last year to Chelsea. Tito Vilanova is trying to add his name to the elite list of managers who have lifted the World’s best club competition. He will join Barcelona legends Johann Cruyff and Pep Guardiola if he is successful and Barca are strong favourites to get off to a winning start tonight against Spartak Moscow.

The Moscow coach, Valeri Karpin, has stated that all the pressure is on Barcelona while his team can play with freedom, and he may be right. Barcelona are well used to the pressure, however, and have done it all before. Puyol, Alba and Iniesta are still missing and Alexis has been back in training.

Mascherano will come into the back four and Adriano will continue in place of Alba. Barca will probably go with a rotating front three of Messi, Pedro and Fabregas that will be a nightmare for the Moscow defence. Thiago is set to start again with Busquets and Xavi in midfield.

Barcelona have the option of David Villa but will probably continue to reintroduce the striker gradually. Messi needs 10 goals in this season’s competition to overtake Shevchenko and van Nistelrooy to be second in the all time list behind Raul. You wouldn’t bet against him.

Pique out but Messi saves Barcelona against Spartak

It is little wonder that Sandro Rosell the Barcelona president spoke today about a new and improved contract for the Barcelona and Argentina number 10. Lionel Messi stepped up to the plate again to rescue an off colour Barcelona from a shock home defeat in the champion’s league.

All was going to plan, to a certain extent, when Tello fired in the opening goal for the Catalans after 13 minutes. Barcelona were already missing their first choice left back, Jordi Alba, and their captain and centre back, Carlos Puyol, so when Pique left the field injured after 12 minutes, Barcelona knew they were in trouble.

Mascherano was filling in for Puyol and has done so successfully before, but he is a midfielder at heart and with nobody to organise him, is prone to making mistakes. Adriano and Alves are better going forward than defending, so alot was being asked of the former Arsenal player Alex Song. Song is versatile and played a defensive midfield role for Arsenal butis also not a central defender.

The defensive deficiencies were highlighted after half an hour. Adriano was out of position, while Mascherano and Song failed to stop the cross before Alves pit it into his own net. The nerves at the back seemed to creep through the team and Barca did not enjoy their usual possession, encouraging Spartak Moscow to push forwards.

When Romulo finished a Russian counter attack to put the visitors ahead, Vilanova brought Alexis on for Alves but the equaliser came from a predictable source. Messi did not have one of his best games but he knows how to score a goal. Two goals in eight minutes gave Barca all three points but the defence must be sorted out soon. Song and Mascherano will be torn to shreds in La Liga, especially in El Clasico.

Bartra and Alba to come in for Barcelona against Granada

Barcelona’s statistics are looking fine at the minute, with a 100 percent league record, having played four and won four, scoring 12 goals and only conceding three. Their opponents tomorrow, Granada, travel to the Nou Camp sitting third from bottom with two draws and two defeats, having scored twice and conceded six.

No problem then, an easy win for Barca on the cards except for the fact that there is a problem at the heart of the Barcelona defence. Carlos Puyol and Gerard Pique are both on the injury list, so who will plug the gap? On Wednesday, Javier Mascherano was filling in for Puyol and was joined by the Cameroon international Alex Song when Pique limped off, but they did not inspire confidence as a central pairing.

The man most likely to be brought in to the starting line up is 21-year old Marc Bartra. The Spanish under-21 player has been at Barcelona since age 11. He has made 81 appearances for Barcelona B and played eight times for the full side, most notably in the last league game of last season. Bartra scored his first senior goal to help Barcelona come from behind to beat Malaga.

Bartra will probably play alongside Mascherano and the defensive solidity will be helped by the return of Jordi Alba at left back. The summer signing has been ill but is set to get his place back from Adriano, who is more comfortable attacking than defending.

If Vilanova is worried about his defence, he does have the option of adding Song to strengthen the midfield. With Busqueta and Song protecting the back four, Barcelona should have no problem repelling Granada, but would lose some sharpness in attack.

David Villa ready to start for Barcelona against Granada

The Barcelona manager, Tito Vilanova, has been very careful with The Spanish international striker David Villa so far this season. The front man has played just 63 minutes of football so far this season, despite being passed as fully fit. His time has been spread evenly over four games, coming on as a substitute against Real Sociedad, Osasuna, Getafe and Spartak Moscow. The prolific Villa has already scored twice and his manager is now prepared to unleash him from the start tonight when Granada come to the Nou Camp.

With both main central defenders injured, Vilanova has a problem and is likely to start with the inexperienced Marc Bartra and Mascherano. If the saying is true, however, about attack being the best form of defence then the presence of Villa should help Barcelona at the back.

With Messi and either Alexis or Pedro, Villa could form a formidable front three for Barcelona and would expect to score a few goals. Barca have a very strong record against Granada who are lying 18th in the league but Vilanova will not allow his players to take the game for granted. The coach is asking his players to ensure that Real Madrid have to sleep tonight knowing they are 11 points adrift of Barcelona, as they do not play until tomorrow.

Puyol facing six weeks out with knee injury

Barcelona: Barcelona captain Carles Puyol faces four to six weeks on the sidelines after falling awkwardly and twisting ligaments in his left knee in their 4-1 La Liga win at Getafe on Saturday, the club said in a statement on Saturday.

The 34-year-old tried to play on after having some treatment on the touchline following the incident, but lasted only a few more minutes before giving way to Javier Mascherano in the 57th.

"Puyol is very important for us and we hope he recovers soon," Barca coach Tito Vilanova told a post-match news conference. "We always seem to have problems with injuries to the central defenders."

Puyol had just returned to action after fracturing a cheekbone against Osasuna last month and had surgery on his right knee back in May which forced him to miss Spain's triumphant Euro 2012 campaign.

If tests on Sunday confirm the initial assessment, Puyol will miss Barcelona's opening Champions League game at home to Spartak Moscow on Wednesday and the visit of Spanish champions Real Madrid in the league on October 7.

Vilanova not too unhappy with Barca's laboured win

Madrid: Barcelona's comeback victory over Spartak Moscow in their Champions League opener on Wednesday proved Tito Vilanova was settling into the Nou Camp hot seat but not before revealing some worrying problems in defence.

It needed the risky introduction of forwards Alexis Sanchez and David Villa, leaving only three at the back, and a late double from World Player of the Year Lionel Messi to finish off the Russian visitors, who had taken a 2-1 lead but Vilanova did not complain.

"I'm not unhappy," Vilanova told a news conference. "We have attacked as we had to do. We have changed the way we played, we took risks and we won. I would have preferred to have won easily, but this game will serve us all well."

Pep Guardiola's former assistant has a tough act replacing a club idol who led the side to four consecutive Champions League semi-finals, and two European Cup triumphs on the way to a 14-trophy haul.

Vilanova was flirting with Barca's first home defeat in 17 European outings, before turning the game round to make it six wins from seven since taking the helm for this season.

Barca top La Liga with a perfect 12 points from four games, eight ahead of stuttering champions Real Madrid, and the only blemish on Vilanova's record is the Spanish Super Cup defeat at the Bernabeu last month.

The worries come for Vilanova in defence, where Spain defender Gerard Pique was forced off after damaging his left foot early on in Wednesday's game, putting him on the injury list for up to three weeks.

Pique joins fellow centre-back Carles Puyol and playmaker Andres Iniesta in the treatment room.

Vilanova turned to recent signing from Arsenal, midfielder Alex Song, for his first game in the centre of defence, along side another converted midfielder Javier Mascherano, and the duo struggled.

"I had thought about using (youth team player Marc) Bartra who hasn't played much up until now," Vilanova said.

"And I had Song who has a lot of experience, and someone we have bought in to fulfill this role."

It was a tough baptism by fire for Cameroon international Song at the back, but he may have to adapt quickly, especially with a 'clasico' against Real Madrid at the Nou Camp looming in two weeks' time.

A bright spot for Vilanova from the Spartak game, however, was the performance of academy winger Cristian Tello.

The pacy 21-year-old scored Barca's opener from distance and set up Messi's second with a run off the left flank and a pull-back in the area.

"He is having a great season," Vilanova said of a player keeping Spain striker Villa on the bench. "We already knew what he was capable of, and he knows what he is doing."