http://www.realmadrid.com/cs/Satellite/en/1193040487651/1202758566716/noticia/Noticia/Happy_New_Year!.htm Real Madrid open 2009 with a session at ValdebebasLaura Navas & Arancha Díaz / Translation by Matthew Goltz
With new year celebrations all but over, Real Madrid were back at work on Thursday to continue preparing for Sunday's Liga showdown against Villarreal.
The same 24 players who trained on the last day of 2008 made their way to Valdebebas on Thursday evening for another preparation session before hosting Villarreal over the weekend. Gonzalo Higuaín is out for a week to ten days due to tonsilitis and was ordered to stay home.
After a brief chat by Juande Ramos, Jordi García and Marcos Álvarez were handed command of the initial warmup jog and stretching drills. The head coach later took over for a tactical session of ball exercises.
Two more sessions remain before the opening match of the new year. Training on Friday and Saturday is sheduled for 11:00 CET.