Applause. After the 3-2 loss to Real Madrid, Joan Laporta came down to the Barcelona dressing room to congratulate the players on their performance. Interviewed by Spanish television after the meeting, Xavi and Gerard Piqué also showed signs of satisfaction despite this poor result, like the words of the coach: “We can be proud to have been competitive, it’s a step forward despite the result, we are on the right track. We can leave with our heads held high ”. Only Mateu Alemany, the director of the club’s football section, was a little more mixed: “An inflection point having lost?” No… “.
A general optimism that we have found in the various media, Catalan as well as national, since the final whistle, and which also seems to be shared by supporters on social networks. First of all, because their team was on a level playing field, or even better, with the Merengues, whom everyone announced as big favorites. In difficulty both in terms of play and results in the league, Barça has shown to be largely at the level of what is the best team in the country, and above all, its biggest rival. The content proposed by the Xavi team, which we still expected to really see the leg, is thus deemed very satisfactory, with a fairly high block and more and more easy to create danger, with an eleven holder of moreover, circumstances.
The returns of Fati and Pedri delight the Catalans
Then, the individual performances of certain players also made that the Culés can look to the coming months with a certain optimism. Pedri and Ansu Fati, back after various physical problems, came into play during the game and revolutionized the game. A player like Ronald Araujo also made a strong impression behind. The tree planted in the Barcelona garden thus begins to give its first green leaves, waiting for sunny days. Even if one cannot compare Barça to that of the last decade in terms of individual quality, Xavi seems largely to have the cards in hand to raise the bar and, at least, succeed in qualifying his team for the Champions League.
On the side of Madrid, some also wanted to congratulate the Barcelonans, in the various debriefing programs of the match on the radio in particular. It must be said that players like Pedri or Ansu Fati are rather appreciated on the side of the capital, since they are the present and the future of the selection. Others, on the other hand, don’t care a little about the Catalan reaction. “Real Madrid lose when they win, and Barça wins when they lose”, ironically Mark in an opinion piece, where we can also read that “Barça lives in his Barçawood film where the teams are not evaluated by the results”. Many are also trying to put the Catalans into perspective by making them understand that it was clearly not the best Real Madrid that Gerard Pique’s gang faced yesterday. Now it’s time for results!
