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Barcelona boss: Luis Suarez is not fat

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique insisted Friday that Luis Suarez is not fat as the controversial Uruguyan striker prepares to make his return to competitive action.

Barcelona boss: Luis Suarez is not fat
Luis Suarez poses after receiving the 2014 Golden Boot. AFP Photo/Lluis Gene

After his ban for biting an opponent at the World Cup, Suarez should make his Barcelona debut against bitter rivals Real Madrid on October 25 and Enrique rejected comments made by some media about Suarez's fitness.

"It's difficult to evaluate if he's at 70, 80, 90 or 100 percent but what is sure is he feels much better in training," said Enrique.

"He's been in a certain dynamic for a while and the fact that he has been able to play for his country has allowed him to rediscover the daily life of a footballer.

"We see him training every day, he's a player like any other and what's clear is that he's not fat.

"He never has been, despite everything that's been said. He's been in shape for several months so everything is fine."

Suarez moved from Liverpool to Barcelona for €95 million in the wake of the storm of controversy after he bit Italian defender Girogio Chiellini at the World Cup and was banned for four months. Suarez was banned for nine internationals.

Although Suarez has played in friendly matches for both club and country during his ban, scoring twice against Oman on Monday, he has not been allowed to appear in official fixtures.

Barcelona lead La Liga after seven matches and host minnows Eibar on Saturday.

Suarez said this week, as he received the Golden Boot award for Europe's top score — which he shared with Cristiano Ronaldo — that starting with Barcelona was "a dream come true."

Asked if he was 100 per cent ready for the Real match, he said: "If you had asked me that a week ago, before the two games with Uruguay, I may have had doubts.

"But I have played in those two (friendly) games and I am probably in better condition than I thought I was. So I think I can say now, yes, 100 per cent, I am ready to play."

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ENVIRONMENT

Why has the expansion of Barcelona airport prompted mass protests?

Around 10,000 people demonstrated against the expansion of the El Prat airport in Barcelona on Sunday.

Why has the expansion of Barcelona airport prompted mass protests?
People march during a demonstration against the expansion of the Barcelona-El Prat airport. Photo: Pau BARRENA / AFP

Several ecological and agricultural organisations, have demanded that the expansion be stopped due to the fact nearby wetlands and farms would have to be destroyed.

The demonstration took place on Calle Tarragona in the Catalan capital between Plaça d’Espanya and Plaça dels Països Catalans.

The protests still took place, even though last week, Spain suspended the €1.7 billion airport expansion project, citing differences with the Catalan government, after president Pere Aragonès said he wanted to avoid destroying La Ricarda lagoon, a natural reserve next to the airport. 

Environmentalists decided not to call off the march, in case plans for the airport expansion still went ahead.

READ ALSO: Six things you need to know about Barcelona airport’s €1.7 billion planned expansion

Political representatives from ERC, En Comú Podem and the CUP also attended, as well as the leader of Más País, Íñigo Errejón; the Deputy Mayor for Ecology of the Barcelona City Council, Janet Sanz, and the Mayor of El Prat de Llobregat, Lluís Mijoler.

People from neighbourhoods across the city marched towards Calle Tarragona and could be seen holding placards that read Nature yes, airport no and shouting slogans such as “More courgettes and fewer planes” and “Fighting for the climate, health, and life”. 

One of the largest groups of people were those from El Prat de Llobregat, the municipality which is home to the airport, who were led by tractors. 

People march during a demonstration against the expansion of Barcelona-El Prat airport. Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP

In addition to protesting against the expansion of the El Prat airport, people were also demonstrating against the Winter Olympic Games in the Pyrenees and extensions to airports in Mallorca and Madrid. 

A representative of Zeroport, Sara Mingorría said “We are here to defend not only La Ricarda, but the entire Delta”. 

The philosopher Marina Garcés also argued that the expansion of the airport would mean “more borders, more mass tourism, more control and more precarious jobs.” 

The leader of the commons in the Catalan parliament, Jéssica Albiach, who also attended the protest, asked the PSOE for “coherence”: “You cannot be passing a law against climate change and, at the same time, defend the interests of Aena [the airport operations company]”, she said. 

She also urged the leader of the Generalitat, Pere Aragonès, to “definitely say no. 

If the airport expansion in Barcelona goes ahead, environmentalists say that CO2 emissions would rise by a minimum of 33 percent. These levels would surpass the limits set by the Catalan government’s climate targets.

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