Tito's health leaves Barça looking at 'Plan B'

Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova assured everybody in his first press conference after returning from the USA that he felt strong enough to complete the year he had left on his contract with the club. And the club, and specifically the president Sandro Rosell, expressed its desire for this to happen and for Tito to stay on as coach for a further season.

However, the club has been preparing a Plan B just in case the worst comes to the worst and the coach is not able to continue. Tito was in New York only a few days ago for a medical check-up and it won't be the last that he has to go through as he continues along the road to recovery from his cancer scare.

His doctors are due to discuss his health with him and confirm whether or not he is in good enough condition to start a new season. For that reason the club's directors have been in contact with various candidates to take over the team in the worst-case scenario. One example was the call made to Manuel Pellegrini to see if it was true that he was ready to take up an offer at Manchester City, and make it known to him that the job at Barcelona could still be an option.