FC Barcelona News: 9 September 2011; Barca Officials Visit Brazil to Pursuit Neymar, Guardiola Wins Award

An award for values | FCBarcelona.cat
Honesty, effort, commitment, teamwork, respect and personal improvement are just a few of the values that the Parliament of Catalonia has highlighted of Josep Guardiola, which they have honoured by presenting him with the Gold Medal on Thursday. His amazing career as both a player and manager have made him one of the outstanding names in football of recent decades.

Abidal speaks sincerely about the future | FCBarcelona.cat
Éric Abidal has spoken sincerely about his health since undergoing surgery for a liver tumour late last season. Before that happened, he was one of the key players in the Barça team, and is now fighting to recover the same level of fitness. Abidal said that is the reason why he has yet to settle terms for his future at the club.

Barcelona chiefs to fly to Brazil & close deal for Santos' Neymar - report - Goal.com
A delegation of Barcelona directors are expected to arrive in Brazil on Friday as they continue their pursuit of Santos forward Neymar. Estadao.com reports a meeting is scheduled between Santos president Luis Alvaro de Oliveira Ribeiro and representatives from the Spanish club.

A transfer to end all transfers - why Real Madrid's battle with Barcelona for Neymar could prove costly - Goal.com
Barca's proposal interests Santos because the Spanish and European champions are willing to wait; the Catalans want to tie up a deal to sign the forward in two years, allowing the player to continue his development in Brazil, keep Santos fans happy and make the big step to Europe as a more complete and well-rounded player. It would seem to suit everyone.

Alves rules out Anzhi switch | Sky Sports
Barcelona full-back Dani Alves has rubbished rumours suggesting he could be the next high-profile arrival at Anzhi Makhachkala. The Brazil international has, however, moved to quash those rumours by insisting that he remains fully committed to Barca. "I want to remain a Barcelona player," Alves said in Marca.

Barcelona's Thiago Alcantara hints Rafinha will snub Spain for Brazil - Goal.com
"It's a very personal decision. We each have our opinion on this matter. We might be brothers, but we feel different about this," Thiago was quoted as saying by Sport. "We have to respect his decision, regardless of whether he chooses Spain or Brazil. "It is a difficult decision for the family, because they want us to represent Brazil. It was a logical decision for me though to choose Spain. I had made up my mind at the age of 16."

The Game in Spain: Child's play as La Liga's 'other' clubs stand up to Barcelona and Real Madrid | Mail Online
The penny has finally dropped. In fact it’s the whole 280million euros worth paid annually to Real Madrid and Barcelona that’s fallen. The 18 ‘other’ clubs in Spain have realized that in every other major league in Europe TV deals are collectively negotiated and more or less evenly shared.

Real Madrid to avoid FIFA action over Neymar pursuit - ESPN Soccernet
But Spanish newspaper Marca claimed that Los Blancos had made contact and could be in hot water with FIFA, should it be proved that the club spoke to the player before having an offer accepted by Santos. In that instance, Real would potentially be at risk of facing FIFA sanctions, as Chelsea did after being found guilty of "inducing Gael Kakuta to break his contract" while the young French midfielder was at Lens.