Barcelona supervisor Xavi has admitted his group do not need the standard of the Barca aspect that conquered Europe below Pep Guardiola. He additionally asserted that the Catalans wanted to point out extra “soul” and aggression to get out of the rut they had been in.
Barcelona Barely Scraped To A Win In opposition to Almeria
La Liga holders Barcelona haven’t been at their greatest this season. They’ve dropped 16 factors in 18 league matches to this point and at present discover themselves in third place within the La Liga rankings, regardless of taking part in one recreation greater than different top-four groups.
On Wednesday (December 20), the Blaugrana welcomed bottom-placed Almeria to the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium in Barcelona. Trying to return to profitable methods after struggling two defeats and a draw of their final three video games in all competitions, Xavi’s aspect wanted to make an announcement of intent in opposition to Gaizka Garitano’s males. Nonetheless, issues didn’t go fairly as deliberate.
Barcelona created a slew of probabilities, however their ending allow them to down. They in some way bought on the precise aspect of a 3-2 scoreline, however Cules had been audibly disenchanted with their show.
Xavi Needs His Gamers To Present Soul And Aggression
In his post-match press convention, Xavi acknowledged his group had been struggling to take their probabilities, which is why he challenged his gamers to point out extra aggression and willpower on the pitch.
The Spanish tactician mentioned (through The Star):
“If we aren’t going to take our probabilities, not less than we should be aggressive and present some soul.
“Until we run like animals we received’t get anyplace. Until we depart our pores and skin on the market we received’t win something. We have to get up. It’s not a soccer challenge, it’s about soul.”
He additionally admitted that his present group couldn’t be in comparison with the Barca aspect of 2010, which featured superstars like Lionel Messi, David Villa, Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique, and, in fact, Xavi himself.
Xavi continued:
“We’re not the Barça from 2010, we don’t have the standard of the Barça from 2010.
“We simply don’t have that, neglect about it. We don’t have that high quality or that particular person functionality. We don’t have that.”
Barcelona received all of it below Guardiola between 2008 and 2012, together with two UEFA Champions League trophies, three La Liga titles, and two Copas del Rey, amongst others.