Barcelona's Valdes declared fit to play

Doctors have declared Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes fit and ready to play after 44 days on the sidelines with a right calf strain, the Spanish club said on Thursday. "It is a day of good news for Barcelona's first team. After a training session on Thursday afternoon, doctors gave keeper Victor Valdes the all clear," the club said in a statement. The 31-year-old could be part of coach Gerardo Martino's side for Barcelona's league match at home to Elche on Sunday. Valdes sustained the injury during Spain's 1-0 defeat to South Africa in a friendly on November 19 in Johannesburg, the site of their 2010 World Cup final victory. The player, who has revealed plans to leave the Spanish champions when his current contract expires at the end of this season, has been replaced in the starting line-up in recent weeks by Jose Manuel Pinto. Source: AFP