Barcelona coach Xavi says defeat to Almeria was their worst performance of the season.
El Bilal Toure proved the matchwinner for Almeria.
“I’m very angry because we played the worst game of the season, especially in the first half,” he reflected.
“We lacked circulation, intensity, rhythm… we didn’t show the passion to win the game.
“In the second half, yes, but you’re trailing.
“It was a difficult match, a tough day, but we’re still seven points clear at the top.
“We failed, we apologise to the fans. It will be hard to win LaLiga, but we have to change our mindset. We didn’t show that we wanted to win.”
Xavi made changes to his team given Thursday night’s elimination in the Europa League, but it was not enough to bounce back.
“We’ve noticed a bit of fatigue, that’s why we’ve made rotations, we’ve changed players,” Xavi explained.
“We’ve been playing a lot of games, but we missed a golden opportunity, we could open the gap to 10 points, but it wasn’t possible. It was a bad day.
“We tried everything, in the end we played with that 3-4-3, with Araujo up top… we had chances with crosses, but not very clear ones.
“There is an Almeria team who are playing for their lives and we lacked that intensity and passion.
“The second half was different, but it was too late, they defended very well, they were very good in the box.”
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