17 December 2006 - The Only Stat That Matters

On 17 December 2006, Barcelona dominated Internacional in the Club World Cup Final in all statistical categories but one--the score.

Playing before a crowd of 62,128 at Yokohama's International Stadium, Barcelona had better possession than the Brazilians (57% to 43%) and also outshot them 17 to 10. Meanwhile, Internacional played a cynical game, delivering more than twice as many fouls (25) as they received (10).

Only two of Internacional's shots were on goal, but it was the last one that counted. Substitute forward Luiz Adriano corralled a long pass near the midfield stripe and maneuvered around defender Carles Puyol to slide a pass toward his fellow substitute, Adriano Gabiru. Defender Rafael Márquez stepped up to challenge him, but slipped, leaving the striker one-on-one against goalkeeper Victor Valdés. Valdés did well to get a hand on Adriano Gabiru's shot, but the ball still ended up in the net for the game's only goal.

Barcelona eventually won the competition in 2009 and are preparing to face another Brazilian club, Santos, for a shot at another.

13 April 1978 - Carles, The King Of Spain

On 13 April 1978, Barcelona captain and World Cup winner Carles Puyol was born in La Pobla de Segur.

After starting his career with his hometown team, Puyol joined the Barcelona youth team in 1995 and has remained with the club ever since, earning promotion to the first team in 1997 under manager Louis van Gaal. When Puyol was 19, van Gaal encouraged him to get a haircut, but Puyol declined and his long curly hair has become a trademark.

Primarily used as a center back, Puyol currently has over 500 appearances for Barça and has captained the team since 2004. Under his leadership, they have won four league titles, two Champions League trophies, and one FIFA World Club Cup.

In 2000, he made his first appearance for Spain and was a key member of their victories campaigns in Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup. In the latter, he scored a rare goal to give Spain a 1-0 victory over Germany in the semi-finals, then helped hold the Netherlands scoreless as Spain won 0-1 in extra time.

2 October 1999 - The Shaggy DF

On 2 October 1999, 21-year old Barcelona defender Carles Puyol made his first-team debut in a 2-0 win at Real Valladolid. Since then, Puyol has made almost 500 appearances for the senior side and has captained them to several honors, including four La Liga titles and two UEFA Champions League trophies.

Easily recognized by his long curly hair, Puyol started his career in 1993 with the Pobla de Segur junior squad, but moved to Barça's youth academy in 1995, then to their B squad in 1997. He originally joined the Catalan squad as a defensive midfielder, but switched to right back, then to center back. He was named captain at the end of the 2003-04 season. The move coincided with Barça's return to glory, as the following season, he led the team to their first La Liga title in six years. Then, in 2005-06, they won the league and the Champions League.

In total, Puyol has won four La Liga titles, two Champions League trophies, one Spanish Cup, four Spanish Supercups, one UEFA Supercup, and one FIFA Club World Cup. In 2010, he won the FIFA World Cup with Spain.