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The Catalan coach has suffered a relapse of his tumour and will need the support of his Camp Nou family as he bids to make a recovery

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By Ben Hayward | Spanish Football Writer

After the joy came heartbreak. Barcelona fans had been in a state of ecstasy on Tuesday following the news that club symbols Carles Puyol, Xavi and Lionel Messi had all agreed new contracts at the Catalan club. Then, later, it emerged that Eric Abidal was ready to return after his liver transplant. It was one of the best days imaginable for fans of the Blaugrana. Today, however, is surely one of the worst.

Reports in the Catalan press on Wednesday morning revealed coach Tito Vilanova had suffered a relapse of the tumour in his mouth which had kept him sidelined for a large part of the 2011-12 campaign. Barca cancelled their Christmas party for the media and president Sandro Rosell's address was called off. Tuesday had been cheerful for the Catalan club, but nobody was feeling festive now.

It remains unclear what will happen next. Vilanova had spoken just two days before at a 'Marathon against Cancer' about his battle to overcome the illness. Now he will need some time off to fight the disease once more, although reports that he will need to step down or be replaced remain premature.

	IN NUMBERS Tito at Barcelona
1	Tito has guided Barca to first place in La Liga, the only side still unbeaten in the whole of Europe (in league games)
2	Vilanova has lost just two matches as Barcelona coach, one in the Spanish Supercopa against Real Madrid, the other to Celtic in the Champions League
14	Vilanova spent four years as Pep Guardiola's assistant, winning 14 trophies for the Catalan club
15	Barca have won 15 of their 16 games in La Liga under Tito, the best-ever start by any side to a league season in Spain
23	In total, Vilanova's Barca have won 23 of the 27 official games he has coached in four competitions

Barca will do everything they cam to help their coach recover, just as they have with Abidal and as they did last season with Vilanova himself. This time, though, there is a key difference. Then, Vilanova was an assistant to Pep Guardiola and although his presence on the bench was missed by the Catalan club, it was not like losing their first team coach.

Now it is exactly that. Barca boast the advantage of a healthy lead in La Liga, after their 4-1 win over Atletico Madrid on Sunday saw them move nine points clear of Diego Simeone's side and 13 ahead of Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid.

The concern, however, will be the effect this devastating news will have on the players, the coaching staff and everyone else at the Catalan club.

It was just under a year ago that Guardiola picked up the Ballon d'Or award for 'Best Coach' and said, "This is for you, Tito", as he dedicated the prestigious prize to his friend following what had been a remarkable recovery.

But Guardiola had looked concerned at the press conference announcing his departure from Camp Nou in April, amid the news that Vilanova would replace him as Barca boss. "Life has handed this kid such a hard test," he said. "You don't know how much he suffered. But he got over it."

Everyone will hope he can again. Now, that is more important than anything else. The Catalan club will need to pull together once more, on the pitch and off it, to stay strong amid the news that nobody wanted to hear. At Christmas, a time for family and togetherness, Barcelona will rally around their popular coach and later, during the winter break and as it becomes clear exactly how long Tito may be out of action, there will be time to consider exactly what to do next.

In the meantime, Vilanova's relapse puts everything in perspective; the whole rivalry between Barca and Madrid, Messi and Ronaldo, La Liga and everything else pales into insignificance compared to this illness. Nevertheless, now more than ever, the club's players will want to win trophies for their coach and emulate Guardiola at the end of the season by saying: "Tito, this one's for you."

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