Barcelona coach, Xavi Hernández, insisted on Friday that his team has to “enter the Champions League no matter what” before facing Betis on Saturday in LaLiga matchday 35.
“The objective, which is not covered, is to qualify for the Champions League and if it can be as second, which gives us the option of playing in the Super Cup, the better”, said Xavi, at the press conference prior to the meeting with Betis.
“These are minimum goals, I have come with the illusion of winning titles. This year it has not given us, we will see next year how we are. We have to enter the Champions League no matter what,” said the Barça coach.
The Barcelona team could mathematically secure that Champions League place if they win on Saturday against Betis.
Xavi announced that central defender Gerard Piqué “has discomfort in the adductor tendon and will be out tomorrow” and as for goalkeeper Marc-André Ter Stegen “yesterday he had stomach discomfort, we’ll see how he is tomorrow, he wants to be, but today he didn’t feel well , has not gone out to the field”.
The Barça coach was also asked about the difference between his team, which endorsed Real Madrid 4-0 at the Santiago Bernabéu, and the teams that the meringues have eliminated in the Champions League.
“The difference between the teams eliminated by Real Madrid and us is that when we were able to finish them off, we finished them off”, explained Xavi.
“History says it, when you forgive them 0-2, 0-3… they end up coming back. They are great comebacks,” he said.
“Madrid has these things that when you forgive them they are capable of coming back. In these games, if they score they start to believe it, they start with faith, it’s their DNA,” he added.
Xavi ruled out, however, that his team could spend so many games appealing to the epic: “It would cost us more, we have a different style of play, but we have won games that we thought we had lost.”
