AS.com

Sandro Rosell and Andoni Zubizarreta today appeared in a press conference held in Barcelona's Training Ground. Team captains Puyol, Xavi, Iniesta and Valdés attended to show their support for the president and sporting director's speeches.

"Good evening. We are here because Tito Vilanova has suffered a relapse of his illness and will have to have another operation. What matters right now is that Tito recovers. He is very, very strong and we are sure he will be back with us soon. The club is also strong and united in the face of adversity. We found out about the news yesterday and we were very keen to respect Tito's wishes, which was to explain the situation to the squad before training. I have decided to cancel the Christmas lunch and other festive celebrations. On behalf of the club and Tito Vilanova I would like to thank all the support we have received."

Privacy: "The most important thing for the club right now is Tito and his recovery. We will try to maintain absolute normality, which won't be easy without Tito. We will be here waiting for him and we just have to carry on. We must all be more respectful; there have been certain misinformed comments which we cannot have. We decided to cancel this morning's press conference because we didn't have enough information. We do not like all the speculation surrounding this but there is very little we can do."

Tito's condition: "Tito looks strong because he is strong. He was also worried about his family, his children, wife and parents. We have to leave him alone to take all of this on board. The initial reaction, though, was good."

Pressure: "I am certain that the people in charge of Tito's situation are the best around. In this case his doctor is the best. The other day I saw the video of the video of La Marató and I found it very emotional. It is incredible this has happened."