Fabregas ready to fly high

The former Arsenal man rarely completed 90 minutes for the Catalan giant in the closing stages of a campaign which saw his side fail to retain both the Champions League and Primera Division.

Following Pep Guardiola's departure, Barcelona has a new man at the helm in Tito Vilanova and Fabregas is confident of an upturn in fortunes, telling the official Barcelona website that his own indifferent performances were down to "a mental block".

"Tito has made it clear that I need to play the way I know," said Fabregas. "I have to be mobile, look for space, help my team-mates by playing the easy ball.

"I've noticed the difference in the first few games of the pre-season, and how rather than staying static at inside left, I have to be more mobile.

"Tito Vilanova is a coach with a lot of personality, more than people think. He'll have a lot to offer and we have to help him.

"He'll help because he knows so much about football and we will help by making sacrifices and having the right attitude. If we help each other, we'll have a great year."

And Fabregas believes pre-season friendlies against Hamburg, Paris St Germain and Manchester United has put Barcelona in good stead for the upcoming campaign.

He added: "These three weeks of the pre-season help to make us stronger and we need to fuel ourselves in order to perform better during the season.

"A good pre-season helps build the fitness to see you thorough to the end".