Barcelona match cancelled

Barcelona's league match at Sevilla has been cancelled on Sunday after a heavy thunderstorm flooded the pitch at the Sanchjez Pizjuan. A cloud burst some 45 minutes before kickoff left the pitch completely waterlogged. The referee decided to delay the kickoff in an attempt to give the playing surface time to absorb the water. Despite the delay, a five-metre stretch of one side of the pitch was left under water and the match was abandoned an hour after the scheduled kickoff time. Carles Puyol and Samuel Eto'o both came out to inspect the pitch but ultimately the decision was made by the referee to cancel the match.

Barca had already been denied the chance to wrap up the Spanish title when Valencia beat Bilbao 3-0 in an earlier match. For an hour groundskeepers remained indoors. Work on drying the pitch began fifteen minutes the referee was due to give his decision giving way to speculation that the home side did not want to play the match. Both teams are still involved in European competition and finding a suitable date will pose serious difficulties. Barcelona take a 1-0 advantage into the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against AC Milan at the Nou Camp on Wednesday and Sevilla host Schalke 04 at home on Thursday after drawing 0-0 in the first leg in Germany.