Xavi Hernández, the coach of FC Barcelona, expressed his frustration at the end of tonight's 0-0 draw against Athletic Club in San Mamés, stating that his team "perhaps lacked more belief in what we're doing because it was a huge opportunity today" to close the gap on Real Madrid and surpass Girona.
Xavi Was Clearly Annoyed by the Team Lack of Drive and Ambition
"We weren't comfortable, we can't be satisfied, we need to be self-critical. Today was a huge missed opportunity. I don't have a good feeling that the team could have won the match. I'm leaving disappointed, but there are games in the season where this happens," he said in the press conference.
Xavi also admitted that "the injuries may have affected us" because "they are two very influential players."
Regarding the injuries to Frenkie de Jong and Pedri González, the Barcelona coach considers them "two very important absences." "They are the ones who give personality to the team in midfield," he noted, hoping "that the recovery time for both cases is less than expected."
About the match, he explained that they "struggled to progress," attributing it to "Athletic's merit in closing passing lanes" when "they pressed." "We struggled to progress throughout the match, we didn't play well," he added, confessing that, in his opinion, "the only positive thing" is that they were "very solid defensively."
Xavi revealed that "the dressing room is affected when it doesn't win, especially knowing it was a very good opportunity." "We lacked more belief in what we were doing, but also Athletic defended very well. The first 15-20 minutes felt like we could win, but then the level dropped. Perhaps we lacked more belief in what we're doing because it was a huge opportunity today," he confessed.
"We gave everything, the team fought hard, and Athletic created very little against us, but we weren't good at progressing with the ball," he summarized his team's performance.
