Barcelona's Eric Abidal Needs A Liver Transplant

The story of FC Barcelona defender Eric Abidal took another tragic turn today, as his club announced that the Frenchman will need an emergency liver transplant due to the evolution of his hepatic condition. About a year ago, doctors found a tumor on Abidal's liver, and operated immediately to remove it. Barcelona has indicated that a transplant "was an option" that doctors have been considering since the original diagnosis, but it had not been necessary until this point. We do not have any more information about the situation, as neither FC Barcelona nor Abidal himself have held extensive press conferences on the subject.

This news certainly comes as a blow to Barcelona's chances of catching up to Real Madrid in la Liga, but more than anything to the entire sport in general: Abidal has been one of soccer's greatest defenders for the past few years, and it's devastating to see him hampered like this.

Real Madrid fans, and fans of la Liga (and soccer generally) should wish him, his family and the Barcelona organization all the best in dealing with this terrible situation. We here at Managing Madrid stand with Abidal as he takes on this newest challenge, and we send him our absolute best wishes for a hasty recovery. Nous espérons que vous récoupérer rapidement!