Barcelona's legendary Masia celebrates its 30th birthday (Feature)

By Duncan Shaw Oct 20, 2009, 9:56 GMT

Madrid - Tuesday is the 30th birthday of La Masia, Barcelona's legendary residence for young players - and a major reasons for the club's recent success.

Catalan daily papers Sport and Mundo Deportivo devote several pages on Tuesday to the birthday.

And there will be a brief ceremony to celebrate the anniversary in the Camp Nou before Barca's Champions League clash on Tuesday at home to Rubin Kazan.

Barca coach Josep Guardiola - one of La Masia's most illustrious 'graduates' - said on Monday that the residence 'is vital for the club. It is the cheapest long-term investment that the club can make...You just have to see that Carles (Puyol), Xavi, (Andres) Iniesta and (Lionel) Messi cost the club very little.'

Guardiola was living at La Masia from 1984 to 1987, after arriving in the big city from his village Santpedor.

'I arrived (at La Masia) at the age of 13,' he said on Monday, 'and they helped me to grow up. I have great memories. I remember the first day, when my parents left me there, and how they gave me really good food.'

La Masia de Can Planes, to give its full name, was built in 1702. It was bought by Barca on 20 October 1979, during the long presidency of Josep Lluis Nunez (1978-2000), in order to accommodation young players from the provinces.

The first director of the residence was Joan Cesar Farres, whose son Joan took over from him after his death in 1993. Carles Folguera has been the director since 2004.

No less than 503 youngsters have passed through La Masia since 1979. Most of them failed to make the grade at Barca, but all of them left with warm memories and a lifelong passion for the red-and-blue stripes.

All of the boys there quickly learn the 'Barca philosophy' of patient possession football - followed by quick interchanges and rapid movement in attack.

Amongst the first products of La Masia, in the 1980s, were Manolo, Angel Pedraza - who played in the 1986 Champions Cup final - Jordi Vinyals, Nayim and Esteban Fradera.

Johann Cruyff, who was appointed Barca coach in 1988, built his 'Dream Team' around La Masia products Guardiola, Luis Milla, Guillermo Amor, Sergi Barjuan and Ivan de la Pena.

Recent 'graduates' include Victor Valdes, Puyol, Xavi, Iniesta and Messi - all of them fundamental elements in Guardiola's current all-conquering side - as well as players who have found success outside Barca such as Jose Reina (Liverpool), Mikel Arteta (Everton) and Cesc Febregas (Arsenal).

The latest products are Bojan Krkic and Pedro Rodriguez, taken into the first-team squad recently by Guardiola.

They will surely not by the last 'graduates' from La Masia to grace the Camp Nou.