Eight FC Barcelona players have been nominated for the 2011 edition of UEFA.com’s Team of the Year. The Champions League and La Liga winners are the most represented team among all the nominees and also have coach Pep Guardiola nominated for Team of the Year Coach. Voting is open now and runs until 12:00 CET Monday, January 5th. The official announcement will be made Wednesday, January 18th.

The following FC Barcelona players were nominated in their respective categories: Víctor Valdés (goalkeeper), Dani Alves (right-back), Gerard Piqué (center-back), Javier Mascherano (center-back), Éric Abidal (left-back), Xavi Hernández (center midfield), Andrés Iniesta (attacking midfield), and Lionel Messi (forward). It is interesting to note that Mascherano, a defensive midfielder, was nominated under the center-back category after Guardiola began slotting him into the back four last season.

55 players and 5 coaches are shortlisted for the coveted 12 spots on the UEFA.com Team of the Year. Chosen by UEFA.com staff writers, the nominations are based on performance in club and national team competitions during 2011. In addition to the prestige of being names to the UEFA.com Team of the Year, the elected captain will also be presented with a €100,000 check to be donated to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Last year, over five million votes were cast that saw six FC Barcelona players in the starting eleven: Gerard Piqué, Carles Puyol (also named captain), Xavi Hernández, Andrés Iniesta, Lionel Messi, and David Villa.

Technique and field IQ right there! The category conveniently left out by the "most complete player" arguments for CR7. Why should shooting with both feet, heading etc. weigh more than Field IQ!?
It is amazing how well these three create space for themselves. messi seems to be a lot faster than xavi but they do it with equal mastery. iniesta is the best at using his body's movement to throw off the other defenders. i love them all.Abidal is pretty good at it too!They make it look so easy. No fancy and rather unnecessary stepovers (like someone we all know) but just simple body movements and quick feet. Xavi , Iniesta and Messi have their own unique skill set which is what makes all 3 of them special. Xavi =unparalleled vision Iniesta = Body feints and quick thinking Messi = Quick feet and immense ball control.insulting for defenders.Another great tactical video by Allas! Thanks!

Champions League Match Preview: FC Barcelona vs. BATE Borisov
Posted at: 03:20 on Tuesday, December 6, 2011 Category: Analysis, Matches Written by: Nossiter
Champions League Match Preview: FC Barcelona vs. BATE Borisov

The imminence of El Clásico brushes away most other thoughts as it approaches, with the week leading up to this epic match a blur of hysterical Marca headlines proclaiming the moral superiority of Madrid’s men in white. It is easy to forget, dear reader, that Tuesday heralds the last game of Champions League action for 2011, with the arrival of Belorussia’s BATE Borisov to contest the final game of Group H. Having firmly secured top spot in the group following a thrilling encounter against Italian rivals AC Milan a fortnight ago, Barça have little to play for but pride; for BATE things are not so simple. Sitting bottom of the table, the Belorussian side enter the final match day fighting for third place, and the golden parachute into the Europa League. As much of Barcelona’s first team rests for this weekend’s decisive match against arch rivals Real Madrid, Borisov look set to face a youthful Catalan side in what should prove an excellent opportunity for the younger players to gain some European experience in front of a home crowd.

Predicted starting XI: Pinto, Piquè, Fontàs, Bartra, Maxwell, Dos Santos, Thiago, Rafinha, Pedro, Cuenca, Deulofeu

Predicted Starting XI: Gutor, Simic, Filipenko, Bordachev, Yerevich, Pavlov, Baha, Kontsevoy, Valadzko, Kezman, Bressan