Abidal fit to face Real
BARCELONA - Barcelona and France defender Eric Abidal, who had surgery on a liver tumour in March, has been given the all-clear and included in the Barca squad for Tuesday's Champions League match against Real Madrid.
Camp Nou boss Pep Guardiola said the 31-year-old would probably not play in the semi-final second leg at the Nou Camp, where Barca will defend a 2-0 lead, but his return is nonetheless good news for the La Liga leaders, who have lost defenders Adriano, Maxwell and Gabriel Milito to injury.
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Midfielder Andres Iniesta, who missed last week's first leg in Madrid with a calf strain, was also declared fit, Barca said on their website.
"The fact that he (Abidal) is back is definitely the real news of the day," coach Pep Guardiola told a news conference.
"We spoke to the doctors and the oncologist and they told us he is in perfect shape," he added.
"He has lost weight and he needs time to get back to form but at least we will see him on the bench with us."
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