Abidal is 'OK' after transplant

The Barcelona defender Eric Abidal is recovering well after a liver transplant, his wife Hayet said in a statement posted on the player's official Facebook page yesterday.

The France international underwent a lengthy operation on Tuesday, just after Barça's 4-0 league victory at home to Getafe during which the whole stadium chanted Abidal's name and applauded the full-back.

"Hi everybody, I'm Hayet Abidal, Eric's wife. I'm writing you, today, on his Facebook page, on his request," she wrote. "Eric and his cousin Gerard [the donor] have indeed been operated [on] yesterday in Barcelona and for the moment, everything is OK!"