Match analysis
“Clearly, the game we played was not the one we planned. We were hoping to make things far more complicated for Barcelona in the first half, to try to ensure they didn’t create any goal opportunities, and as the match advanced, we’d attempt to stretch ourselves further. We tried to put pressure upfront in the opening stages and we showed intensity. They have special, different players. When they score goals, there are lots of people in between the player who makes the assist and the one who converts. They have players who stand out for their quality, and they scored an impeccable goal to go 0-1 in front. That was an extremely harsh blow for us, as we’re having a lot of problems netting goals. From then on, we wavered somewhat, and they scored the second goal shortly afterwards. Then came the expulsion, which was a product of our frustration. The player is far from aggressive. He had no intention whatsoever of causing harm, he just got to the ball too late. We attempted to immerse ourselves in the game, full of enthusiasm and determination for the fans. We had a few chances, but it’s such a struggle for us to score. In addition, Roberto held us up for a long time. We must applaud him for his performance tonight. In the second half, we were against the team with the most possession in LaLiga, and they make it seem very easy. We tried our best with some incursions and had our chance to get into the game, but the rival is superior. We’re not where we are today because of this match, but for previous ones”.
Professionalism
“It’s tough but we’re professionals. We owe the fans, the shield and the history. We need to respect them. As a team we must compete, get up tomorrow and think about Vigo. 90 per cent of teams in LaLiga will lose against Barcelona, but our loss isn’t a product of today. I understand everyone’s frustration. We can see the gap is large, but we must carry on to the best of our ability. I think we are where we are because of our inability, not because of a lack of drive and hard work. I want to stress again that week after week the team works very well in training”.
