Barcelona coach Xavi blasted his players after their 3-2 win against Almeria on Wednesday night.
Sergi Roberto struck twice for Barca’s victory, which still left Xavi fuming.
He said: “I have had more suffering than I expected and than we deserved. We shot 30 times and gave away two goals. The first half is unacceptable as a coach. The second half, yes.
“We have failed a lot and we have been with that trend for a month and a half or two.
“The first half is unacceptable, I told the players at half-time. We lack effectiveness, but we have to have aggression and soul. As a coach, I don’t accept it. Either we run like animals or it doesn’t reach us.
“We don’t have the Barça of 2010. Last year we were aggressive and ran… people whistled… in the second they cheered. We can’t not give it our all. In the second, they have come out in a different way. Either we give our all or we won’t win anything. You have to wake up.
“If it doesn’t come to us through football, it comes to us through our soul.”
He continued: “The team has lacked soul. The team does not have that soul that it had last season. Neither aggressiveness, concentration… the one in the second half is the Barça I want. We needed more rhythm, intensity.”
On Roberto, Xavi added: “It gives me satisfaction that it is Sergi Roberto because he is an example, whether he plays or not. He almost scored a hat-trick, but beyond this is the work, how he encourages people. I’m happy for him.”
Be the first to comment