MADRID - Cesc Fabregas has said he is enjoying his more significant role in the Barcelona side as they look to continue their storming start to the campaign with a win over Espanyol in the Catalan derby today.
Kickoff is at 10pm.
Fabregas was involved in all three of Barca's goals as they moved four points clear of Atletico Madrid in second place with a convincing 3-0 win over Celta Vigo on Tuesday.
Barca boss Gerardo Martino had taken the opportunity to rest a number of his stars for the game in Galicia as the likes of Neymar, Andres Iniesta and Xavi all started on the bench.
However, Fabregas was retained from the side that beat Real Madrid 2-1 on Saturday and registered his second goal of the season with Barca's third nine minutes into the second half.
"Right now I am playing a lot of games, I feel important and the only thing that I have to do is play well for the team," he told the club's website. "These rotations give life to a lot of players and they are making us all feel important."
Martino has been keen to ensure his players don't suffer from burnout in the way they did towards the end of the last campaign when they were hammered 7-0 on aggregate by Bayern Munich in the Champions League semifinals.
And with Barca in the midst of seven games in 22 days, the Argentine will rotate once more for the visit of Espanyol.
Meanwhile, Gareth Bale finally made his mark at Real Madrid on Wednesday, only for Cristiano Ronaldo to upstage his two-goal performance with a hat-trick in a 7-3 victory over Sevilla.
The Welshman celebrated his first league start at the Santiago Bernabeu by scoring twice and setting up two more.
"I showed what I was capable of tonight," Bale told Canal Plus after the encounter.
Weekend's fixtures:
TOMORROW
Real Sociedad vs Osasuna (5pm), Almera vs Real Valladolid (7pm), Rayo Vallecano vs Real Madrid (9pm). Sevilla vs Celta Vigo (11pm)
SUNDAY
Getafe vs Valencia (1pm), Atletico Madrid vs Athletic Bilboa (6pm), Levante vs Granada (8pm) and Malaga vs Real Betis (10pm).
Cesc enjoys Barca role
MADRID - Cesc Fabregas has said he is enjoying his more significant role in the Barcelona side as they look to continue their storming start to the campaign with a win over Espanyol in the Catalan derby today.
Kickoff is at 10pm.
Fabregas was involved in all three of Barca's goals as they moved four points clear of Atletico Madrid in second place with a convincing 3-0 win over Celta Vigo on Tuesday.
Barca boss Gerardo Martino had taken the opportunity to rest a number of his stars for the game in Galicia as the likes of Neymar, Andres Iniesta and Xavi all started on the bench.
However, Fabregas was retained from the side that beat Real Madrid 2-1 on Saturday and registered his second goal of the season with Barca's third nine minutes into the second half.
"Right now I am playing a lot of games, I feel important and the only thing that I have to do is play well for the team," he told the club's website. "These rotations give life to a lot of players and they are making us all feel important."
Martino has been keen to ensure his players don't suffer from burnout in the way they did towards the end of the last campaign when they were hammered 7-0 on aggregate by Bayern Munich in the Champions League semifinals.
And with Barca in the midst of seven games in 22 days, the Argentine will rotate once more for the visit of Espanyol.
Meanwhile, Gareth Bale finally made his mark at Real Madrid on Wednesday, only for Cristiano Ronaldo to upstage his two-goal performance with a hat-trick in a 7-3 victory over Sevilla.
The Welshman celebrated his first league start at the Santiago Bernabeu by scoring twice and setting up two more.
"I showed what I was capable of tonight," Bale told Canal Plus after the encounter.
Weekend's fixtures:
TOMORROW
Real Sociedad vs Osasuna (5pm), Almera vs Real Valladolid (7pm), Rayo Vallecano vs Real Madrid (9pm). Sevilla vs Celta Vigo (11pm)
SUNDAY
Getafe vs Valencia (1pm), Atletico Madrid vs Athletic Bilboa (6pm), Levante vs Granada (8pm) and Malaga vs Real Betis (10pm).
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