Barça B go down to Jerez in final game of the season (2-1)

Missing a number of key players, Barça B lost their final game of the season in Jerez. 

Goals from Javi Forján and Franco Amoroso gave Jerez the win.

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  Imatge del partit de la primera volta. FOTO. Arxiu - FCB

La fitxa del partit

Xerez, 2
Barça B, 1

Xerez CD: Toni, Mendoza, Galán, Porcar (Franco Amoroso 71’), José Vega, Rafa García, Álvaro Rey, David Prieto, Marquitos (Alfonso 64’), Javi Forján (Maldonado 62’) i Marcelo

Barça B: Bañuz, Balliu, Sergi Gómez, Ilie, Lombán, Espinosa, Luis Alberto, Sergi Roberto, Gus Ledes, Joan Román i Dongou

Goals: Javi Forján (Min. 7), Dongou (Min .31) i Franco Amoroso (Min. 79)

Despite competing throughout the game, Eusebio Sacristan’s youngsters lost their final league game 2-1 in Jerez.

Barça were without a number of key players off on international duty and found it hard against a wel organised Jerez who took an early lead through Javi Forján. Dongou equalised after half an hour, but Franco Amoroso’s 79th minute strike proved to be the winner, despite a strong finish from the visitors.

All square at the break

The hosts took Barça by surprise with their first attack of the game, Marquitos crossing for debutant Javi Forlan to head past Bañuz. Although the visitors dominated possession, they were unable to create real chances and Lomban’s header over on 15 minutes was their only real opportunity – with Jerez immediately answering with an Alvaro Rey shot that hit the post with Bañuz beaten.

Dongou drew Barça level on the half hour though, when he finished off an excellent counter from Joan Roman who set up the Cameroon youngster to fire left footed past the Jerez keeper, who was again called into action five minutes from the break when he spectacularly saved a Luis Alberto shot from the edge of the box.

Second half winner

Eusebio Sacristán’s team looked more dangerous after the break with Espinosa firing just wide on 46 minutes and Luis Alberto again testing the home keeper. Then, on 56 minutes Luis Alberto and Sergi Roberto did brilliantly to set up Dongou, who failed to finish the move off.

Jerez came back into the game and began to create their own openings though and on 79 minutes Franco Amoroso rounded off a break to put them ahead again. Barça pushed for an equaliser in the final minutes.

Unmatched dominance

Only Barça have won four out of the last five league titles in the leading European countries

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Tito Vilanova, Jordi Roura and Aureli Altimira have said before that this hasn’t been their first league title with the first team, but their fourth, as they have been with the squad since 2008 and formed part of the back room staff that helped lift the 2008/09, 2009/10, 2010/11 titles – with the team only missing out in the 2011/12 campaign over the last five years.

English, Italian and German titles more evenly spread

Barça’s domestic dominance is unmatched in the major European leagues: Manchester United have had to share the Premier title with City and Chelsea, Inter, Milan and Juventus have lifted the Italian title over the last five editions, whilst Bayern Munich and Borrusia Dortmund have each claimed two Bundesligas.

Porto in charge in Portugal

There has been a similar dominance in Portugal, where the traditional rivalry between Porto and Benfica has tilted in favour of the blue and whites of late, with Benfica only managing one title in the last five years(2009/10), whilst Porto have, like Barça won four of the last five – though they certainly had to sweat on this year’s title, winning in the last game of the season.

Six different French champions in six years

In some of the smaller leagues – such as In Greece and Denmark, there has indeed been a similar dominance, with Olympiakos and Copenhagen leaving the rest behind, whilst in leagues such as the Dutch, Russian or Turkish, the prizes have been more evenly distributed. Finally, in France no team has been able to stamp their authority, with six different sides winning over the last six years.

The Joan Gamper Trophy to be played on August 2

The match will be played before the team's Asia tour

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  Xavi with the Trofeu Joan Gamper (2011) / PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ - FCB.

The Joan Gamper Trophy, which is usually celebrated at the end of August, will be held a bit earlier this year. Toni Freixa, secretary and spokesman for the Board of Directors, explained that the match will be played on August 2, at 21.30. Barça’s opponent has yet to be announced. 

The Gamper will be played before Tito Vilanova’s men make the trip to Israel, Palestine, Thailand and Malaysia. Three pre-season friendlies – Lechia Gdansk, Bayern Munich and Valerenga –  are on the schedule ahead of the Gamper.

Santos FC

Just as Freixa announced, there’s a possibility that Barça’s rival will be Santos FC, Neymar’s ex-club. With that said, the definitive confirmation is pending authorization from the Brazilian Football Confederation.

FC Barcelona play almost the maximum possible fixtures

Barça have played sixty official matches season, only missing out on the finals of the Copa del Rey and Champions League 

In five seasons, FC Barcelona have played 307 of a possible 316 games 

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  Messi, Alexis and Iniesta PHOTO: ARXIU FCB

It has been another busy season for FC Barcelona in which they played 60 out of a maximum possible 62 fixtures, only missing out on the finals of the Copa del Rey and Champions League. They went out in the semis of both knockout competitions, to Real Madrid and Bayern, respectively.

Five busy years

Those games represent 96.77% of the maximum possible. But the average over the last five seasons is even higher for FC Barcelona, who have played 307 of the 316 possible fixtures (97.15%) and only in the 2009/10 season has the team missed more than two possible games. That year they went of the Copa del Rey in the round of 16 to Sevilla, meaning they were absent for the five matches in the quarters, semis and final.

In the 2013/14 season, FC Barcelona will once again face a potential 62 matches (38 in the league, 13 in the Champions League, 9 in the Copa del Rey and 2 in the Spanish Supercup, while they will not be appearing in the Clubs World Cup).

Seven Barça players looking to add Confederations Cup to their collection

Valdés, Piqué, Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, Pedro and Villa have won every club trophy possible with Barça as well as the European Cup and World Cup with Spain.

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  Set jugadors del Barça poden completar el seu palmarès amb la Copa Confederacions

In Brazil, seven players of FC Barcelona are aiming to add the only trophy they are missing to their impressive collection. Valdés, Piqué, Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, Pedro and Villa have won the lot with Barça and with the Spanish national team; the only trophy they are lacking is the Confederations Cup, which gets underway this weekend.

Eight from nine

All seven players have winners medals for the Champions League, the Spanish league, the Spanish Cup, the European and Spanish Super Cups and the FIFA World Club Cup.  In addition they have all gained winner’s medals in the World Cup and the European Cup with Spain. Now they have another chance to add the only trophy they lack – the Confederations Cup – which Piqué, Busquets, Xavi and the now absent Puyol failed to pick up in 2009.

Puyol has collected the same eight winner’s medals as his teammates but has not been included in the Spain squad for the Confederations Cup.  Others, like Cesc and Jordi Alba, have yet to complete the full house of meals with Barça.  Cesc and Jordi Alba are missing the Champions League while the young defender has also yet to win the Spanish Cup and the two Super Cups.

Barça Alusport - ElPozo Murcia: Torras and Sedano decide the first match (1-0)

A goal from Torras in the second half gave Barça the lead 

With 44 seconds to go, Sedano saved a penalty taken by Miguelín

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  Torras / PHOTO: GERMÁN PARGA-FCB

MATCH FACTS

Barça Alusport, 1
ElPozo Murcia, 0

Barça Alusport (0+1):Sedano, Ari, Gabriel, Lin, Wilde (starting five), Aicardo, Torras, Lozano, Igor, Saad

ElPozo Múrcia (0+0): Rafa, Bebe, Kike, Miguelín, Álex (starting five), Ruiz, Suazo, Gréllo, Paulinho

Goals: 1-0, Torras (min 26)

Referees: Gutiérrez Lumbreras and Lope Díaz

Barça Alusport took the lead in the final series for the league title. This Wednesday, in the first match of the series against ElPozo Murcia, the Blaugrana won thanks to a goal from Torras in the second half and a phenomenal penalty save from Sedano with only 44 seconds left on the clock. The series will head to Murcia for games two and three. Thanks to tonight’s victory at the Palau, only one team has the possibility to claim the title this weekend, and that’s Barça Alusport.

The FC Barcelona Museum unveils its Salvador Espriu exposition

The Club commemorates Salvador Espriu and the Año Espriu with an exposition dedicated to the works of the Catalan author. The exposition will remain open through the end of the calendar year

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  Carles Vilarrubí / PHOTO: Germán Parga

The FC Barcelona Museum is hosting an exposition dedicated to Salvador Espriu. It’s a small exposition, where Museum attendees can learn about the Catalan author through texts and quotes translated into various languages. 

The exposition is located in the hall that’s home to the titles that Barça has won throughout its long and storied history. The Club and the Espriu organisation are expecting the exposition to be successful given the high volume of visitors the Museum welcomes every year. 

“Getting close to Catalan culture”

The exposition was presented this Wednesday morning, and FC Barcelona’s institutional vice-president, Carles Vilarrubí, was in attendance. “This corner of the Museum will serve to bring Catalan culture closer to the 1.5 million visitors [we receive each year],” he said. “People who visit us will get a flash of the significance this powerful figure has had on Catalan literature.”

The commissioner of the ‘Año Espriu,’ Xavier Bru de Sala, highlighted Barça’s extraordinary collaboration to make the exposition a reality: “Barça are one of the institutions that have contributed the most to make the purpose of the Año Espriu a reality, which is to bring [his work] beyond those who are interested in learning about culture so that it can reach as many citizens as possible.”

Barça committed to the Año Espriu

FC Barcelona is one of many Catalan institutions that’s committed to celebrate the Año Espriu in 2013, which commemorates the 100-year anniversary of the author’s birth. The Club organised a special tribute to Salvador Espriu before the match between Barça and Levante, which coincided with the festivities of Sant Jordi. 

Espriu is one of the most well-known Catalan authors, and the values that guided his life are ones that the Club holds dear: Catalan identity, universality, social commitment and democracy.