- Xavi’s Barcelona was defeated 1-0 by Shakhtar, in the Champions League
- Manager says his team deserved to win the match
- Barca suffered its second loss in as many games.
After their Champions League Group Stage defeat, Xavi Hernandez said that Barcelona had “not understood” the strategy needed to beat Shakhtar Donesk.
In Hamburg, the Catalan giants lost 1-0 to Ukrainian champions. Danylo’s header in the first half was enough for three crucial points in Group H.
Barcelona only had one shot at goal during this game. Shakhtar, on the other hand, recorded four. Robert Lewandowski, a prolific goalscorer, has gone six matches without shooting on target. This is the first such streak that the Pole has experienced since 2011.
After winning their previous three group games, is still on the cusp of qualifying for knockout rounds. However, a furious Xavi has admitted that his team’s performance was below par.
We deserved to be defeated. Let’s be real. He told reporters that “we played poorly and our plans did not work.”
The level of performance is very low right now. It was the worst game I have ever seen in my two years as coach. It’s important to have a critical eye. The second half was better, but not enough. We didn’t give our best today. This is a clear step back.
We are furious. We are angry.
Shakhtar deserved the win / Marvin Ibo Guengoer – GES Sportfoto/GettyImages
We didn’t know what was needed. “We lost many balls, didn’t play well in attack, didn’t handle crosses well, and paid the price for our mistakes.”
Xavi, who was also disgusted with his team’s performance during a close win against Real Sociedad at the weekend in La Liga, labelled that show as ” totally unacceptable” and acknowledged his side needed to overcome a mental barrier.
We must restore confidence. We are experiencing a slight dip at the moment. It’s not so long since we played very well football.
Barca will be able to secure a place in the 16th round on 28 November when Porto, who is level with Xavi’s team at the top group H, visits the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium.
