updated 12:38 p.m. ET Dec. 15, 2011
YOKOHAMA, Japan - David Villa broke his left leg, marring Barcelona's 4-0 victory over Qatar's Al-Sadd on Thursday night that advanced the European champions to the Club World Cup final against Brazil's Santos.
Villa was vying with two defenders in the 37th minute when he landed awkwardly. He fell to the ground, called for help and was carried off on a stretcher. The team said he had a broken shin bone, will return to Spain for surgery and will be sidelined for four to five months.
"Missing him in the team is going to be a blow," Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola said. "I understand it is going to be a long time. We all love David. His personality is great. We all worry about him."
Villa is Spain's career scorer leader, and it's not clear whether he will return in time for the European Championship. Trying to repeat as champion, Spain opens against Italy on June 10.
"There are six months to go. Let's see if he can get well," Spain coach Vicente del Bosque was quoted as saying by Spanish news agency Europa Press. "There are some players that get healthy sooner than others."
The 30-year-old forward has nine goals for Barcelona this season, his playing time diminishing following the acquisition of Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez.
Barcelona, the 2009 world champion, advanced to Sunday's final against Brazil's Santos. Making six changes from the starting lineup that won 3-1 at Real Madrid on Saturday, Barcelona had some unlikely scorers: Adriano had two goals in the first half, and Seydou Keita and Maxwell had one each in the second.
Adriano put Barcelona in the lead in the 25th minute after goalkeeper Mohamed Saqr failed to hold a tap back from Nadir Belhadj following a cross by Pedro Rodriguez. Adriano then made it 2-0 in the 43rd with a left-footed shot from just inside the penalty area.
Lionel Messi set up Barcelona's third goal in the 64th with a perfect pass to Keita, who finished with a flick, and Maxwell scored in the 81st with an angled left-footed shot that deflected in off Saqr's leg.
Coming in, Adriano had scored just twice since joining Barcelona in July 2010: on Feb. 2 at Almeria in 3-0 Copa del Rey win and on Oct. 2 in 1-0 league win at Sporting Gijon.
Maxwell scored his first goal since Dec. 14, 2008, for Inter Milan against Chievo Verona, while Keita hadn't scored since May 11 against Levante.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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