FCBARCELONA.CAT

18.09.2007 20:03

Abidal uneasy about facing former club

Roger Bogunyà

24 hours before his Champions League debut in a Barça shirt, Éric Abidal has said he doesn’t like the idea of playing his old club, although he is approaching the game like any other.

“I don’t like playing my ex-team. That’s only normal” said Éric Abidal when asked how he felt about facing the team he left just a few months ago, Olympique Lyon , at the Camp Nou. Nevertheless, he claimed he is “approaching the game like any other”.

Benzema the new star

Asked about the new Lyon striker, Benzema, who Abidal remembers from his time in France, the Barça player said “he got the chance to show his quality when Fred was out injured, he is a more mature player now.”

First up, Lyon

The Champions League, he says “is important and any player would like to lift it.” But these are early days and Abidal feels they should focus on the game tomorrow and not worry yet about what might happen in later rounds.

Rijkaard and the players united

Éric Abidal was asked what he feels about the fierce criticism from the press following the disappointing draw in Pamplona. “They always criticise the manager the most, but Rijkaard is working so that the group can work well, and I think that if anything needs criticism it’s the team as a whole. We are a group, the manager too, but if things go badly, the manager gets the criticism.”