Cesc’s Dad: My son of a Gun will play against Barca

by CARL ELDRIDGE Cesc Fabregas will be fit to line up against Barcelona tomorrow night in the Champions League, so says his Pop. This morning’s Sun reports that AW feared the midfielder would miss tie after he suffered bruising to his right leg and knee at Birmingham on Saturday.

But his dad Francesc is confident he will face his former club in the quarter-final clash. He said: “The blow hurts a lot less now and it seems to be just a knock, nothing more serious. I think Cesc will play. Although he may not be at his best he will do everything he can to be part of it.”

The paper adds that Abou Diaby also picked up a slight knock in the Birmingham match and Samir Nasri and Andrey Arshavin, who are struggling with groin and knee problems, will not be fit enough to start against the holders. Thomas Vermaelen will return to partner Sol Campbell in the centre of defence after serving a one-match ban.

“I believe Cesc is more relaxed now,” AW said. “There is less tension in his finishing. You feel that before he wanted to force the chance and now he is more relaxed. Also he has gained more physical power. You can see he resists much more the runs of his opponents and is more powerful in his runs. These two ingredients make a big difference. Also I believe the change in formation has had an impact as well. He has more freedom to join in now.”

Bendtner said: “To me, Messi is the greatest player in the world right now. He has got a fantastic vision of the game, and what he can do technically – it’s just crazy. The things he can do with the ball – and at pace and top speed – is just amazing.

“What decides it for me is not his many goals, because his goal account is impressive, but the thing is that he can do so much for his team. What counts is the total amount of his many, many qualities. He is just the greatest. He has got such quick feet and such good dribbling skills that you simply can’t take the ball away from him when he is in high speed.