Barcelona's coach Xavi Hernández stated that the Blaugrana will approach Saturday's match at Montilivi as a "challenge" to seek "footballing revenge" for the first-leg encounter, in which Girona emerged victorious (2-4) at Montjuïc.

"It's not a final (for the second place) nor will it be decisive, but it's very significant," affirmed the coach from Terrassa, who opined that in the first leg, Barcelona deserved "more," as they were "good in the game" but lacked "defensive adjustments" and the "clarity" that the team under Míchel Sánchez displayed.

From the press room at the Joan Gamper Sports City, Xavi recalled that in the first-leg match, Barcelona didn't defend the area well and made mistakes in marking the midfielders individually, a formula that sank his team and one that he will correct this time.

"They seek something very similar to us, superiority through the middle with a lot of mobility among the players in the square," commented the Barcelona coach, who highlighted that Girona is "riding high on confidence" after having "a historic season" in which they've demonstrated a "Champions League level."