Barcelona were dealt a blow in the defence of their La Liga title as they succumbed to a 2-4 defeat to Catalan rivals and new league leaders Girona at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on Sunday night.
It was a tough pill to swallow for Barça as they not only lost the Catalan derby, but also fell seven points behind Girona in the La Liga standings.
Naturally, there was a lot of disappointment over how things went down on Sunday night, with Frenkie de Jong making it clear that he and the team were not good enough against Michel’s men.
Speaking to the media after the match (h/t Mundo Deportivo), the Dutchman said: “It is a tough defeat, we were not good. Girona have done well, but it is our fault.”
Being self-critical, the Dutchman added: “We haven’t been good with the ball, neither have I, especially in the first half.”
Discussing the La Liga title race, the midfielder further added: “We are seven points behind Girona, which is a lot. There is time, there is a lot of La Liga left, but we have to improve a lot. We are disappointed, it is hard, but we can come back.”
Girona can win La Liga, says Araujo
Meanwhile, Ronald Araujo, who captained Barcelona on the night, lamented the team’s performance and lack of pressing, something that Xavi had highlighted in his post-match presser.
“It is true that we talk a lot about defense, but it belongs to the entire team, pressure is very important, when they take the ball from us it hurts,” Araujo said.
Giving credit to Girona, the Uruguayan backed them as serious contenders to win the title, saying: “Girona is a great team. La Liga is very long, but they have enough quality to win it.”
Araujo started last night’s game with face mask after having suffered a minor cheekbone fracture against Atletico Madrid last week. But the centre-back got rid of the mask midway through the game.
“The mask bothered me a lot. I wasn’t comfortable and I decided to take it off,” he explained.
Barcelona must keep working, says Lewandowski
Meanwhile, one of Barcelona’s goalscorers last night, Robert Lewandowski, also addressed the media and admitted that Girona were better than them in some aspects. At the same time, he urged his teammates to keep working to make progress.
“It was a very difficult game for us. I think in some respects they were better than us. We tried to do something, but it was difficult. We have to keep working and thinking positive,” Lewandowski stated.
“We are trying to give our best. Today was not our day and we knew how difficult the game was and it was not only today but every game for them. We have to analyse what happened and try to win the remaining games,” he concluded.