Soccer
FC Barcelona is really not to be envied at the moment. In the Spanish Cup, the Catalans not only lost 3-2 at Athletic Bilbao after extra time on Thursday, but also have to cope with a bitter absence after young star Ansu Fati was injured again. Added to this are the quarrels with Ousmane Dembele. Coach Xavi Hernandez spoke of “difficult times” that the club is going through.
Fati came on as a substitute in the 61st minute and had to be substituted off again in the 96th minute of extra time. Spanish media reported a break of four to six weeks. “He was very crushed,” said Xavi. Fati had already had to pause for many weeks in autumn due to problems with his thighs, and he almost completely missed last season due to a knee injury. Barcelona’s second youngster Pedri also left the field in Bilbao, although he is unlikely to be seriously injured.
In addition, the dispute between the club and winger Dembele creates a bad mood. After Barca recently announced their intention to separate, the 24-year-old Frenchman accused the club’s management of “blackmail”. Xavi doesn’t believe that the unrest surrounding Dembele had an impact on the team. “Of course he’s an important player, but that didn’t affect us.”
The former world-class player looked scarred after the defeat in Bilbao. “It’s a difficult day,” admitted Xavi. In the league, the Catalans are only sixth, 17 points behind leaders Real Madrid, who lost in the semi-finals of the Supercup a week ago. “We have no choice but to work and work. Now we have the league and the Europa League. We have to try to recover quickly,” said Xavi. “Because that’s two hard hits, two lost titles in one week.”
Real coach Ancelotti celebrates victory against Elche
The trophy for the Supercup went to Real, who are also in the cup quarter-finals thanks to a 2-1 win over Elche after extra time. The template for Eden Hazard’s winning goal came from David Alaba. The second Real goalscorer was Isco, who, like Hazard, is not a regular this season. The duo received all the more praise from coach Carlo Ancelotti. “Today we needed them and they won the game for us,” said the Italian.
Ancelotti considered the win against Elche to be the most beautiful win of the season. “Because the team showed a lot of character and strength. My players never give up.” Ancelotti was less happy with the tight schedule. “The match calendar is absolute nonsense,” complained the coach. Real only had to play a 120-minute game against Barca in the Supercup semifinals in Saudi Arabia last week, and they won the final against Bilbao on Sunday. Now it’s again this Sunday in the league against Elche, this time in their own stadium.
