|
|
Vilanova: Villa guarantees goals
Aug 11, 2012 11:00:00 PM
The Barcelona coach has welcomed the return of the striker and is confident he will play a crucial role in leading the club to success this season
| Bet: | Returns: | Espanyol £50.00 | Draw £43.33 | Barcelona £16.00 |
|
| Bet: | Returns: | Espanyol £60.00 | Draw £40.00 | Barcelona £15.30 |
|
| Bet: | Returns: | Espanyol £55.00 | Draw £38.00 | Barcelona £16.15 |
|
| Bet: | Returns: | Espanyol £50.00 | Draw £41.00 | Barcelona £16.20 |
|
The 30-year-old fractured his tibia playing for the Blaugrana against Al Sadd in last season's Club World Cup, forcing him to remain sidelined for the past eight months and subsequently ruling him out of Euro 2012.
Watching Villa make his return to the side in the 73rd minute of Barcelona's 2-0 win over Dinamo Bucharest, Vilanova was quick to herald the former Valencia player's talents, as the team prepares for the campaign ahead.
“Last year we missed him [Villa] because he’s a player that guarantees goals. He’s very necessary to the side,” he told the club's official website.
"I spoke with the doctors and the physios before playing him against Dinamo. It is very important for us to recover players, especially if they are well-loved like Villa is."
The Catalan giants triumphed thanks to goals from Lionel Messi and Ibrahim Afellay, and Vilanova has been left enthused by what he has observed in pre-season.
"The team is playing at a good level ahead of the start of the league. We have had a group of players that have trained for two solid weeks.
"When the players come back from international duty we willl make a decision on who will play in the league based on how they are feeling. [Vicente] Del Bosque picks the players that he wants and we don’t have anything to say on the matter."
Barcelona open their Primera Division campaign against Real Sociedad on August 20th, as they attempt to wrest the La Liga crown back from arch-rivals Real Madrid in the new term.
| Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25 |
|
| Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
|
| Sign up to Paddy Power for £250 in free bets |
|
| Sign up today with Coral and get a £50 FREE bet - no strings attached! |
|
| Sign up today with BetVictor and get a £25 FREE BET! |
|
Related Stories
Make Your Prediction
Espanyol - FC Barcelona
Espanyol
FC Barcelona
Prediction Submitted
Most Popular Predictions
-
Espanyol 1-3 FC Barcelona
- 15.97 %
-
Espanyol 0-5 FC Barcelona
- 12.74 %
-
Espanyol 0-3 FC Barcelona
- 9.89 %
Inside Goal.Com
-
Bayern's jinx - CL final referee Nicola Rizzoli
Goal takes a look at the career of the Italian arbiter to date following Uefa's decision to appoint the 41-year-old for Saturday's showpiece at Wembley
-
Goal's Serie A awards for 2012-13
Goal crowns the best and worst from Italy over the course of the season
-
Now or never for Wenger to seal legacy
The Gunners sealed a place in next season's Champions League with victory at Newcastle on Sunday - and must now spend money to improve the squad over the summer
-
And Goal.com's World Player of the Week is ...
Check out which star man gets the nod from our panel of experts this week ...
-
Milan failings laid bare on dramatic day
The Rossoneri clinched third spot in dramatic fashion in Siena on Sunday but still have a long way to go to get to where they need to be
