Puyol came on in the 67th minute of the game with AC Milan as a substitute for Keita and was welcomed with a huge ovation from the Camp Nou faithful. After several months on the sidelines recovering from an knee injury, everybody involved in Barça was delighted to see the captain back in action.

110 days since Wembley

Barça have been without Puyol since the Wembley final 110 days ago, when he came on for the last two minutes of the 3-1 win. It was only a brief return after a long period of treatment, and before that his last appearance had been on May 16 in the Champions League semi final against Real Madrid.

Carles Puyol was immediately handed the captain’s armband by Xavi and played on the left of a three-man defence alongside Mascherano and Alves.