Tuesday night’s result was a bitter pill to swallow for FC Barcelona as they lost 1-4 at home to PSG, leading to their elimination from the UEFA Champions League.
The fact that the Blaugrana had an advantage from the first leg in Paris and had further added to that by scoring early last night, only to collapse in the manner they did makes it even more frustrating.
Naturally, the defeat left a bitter taste for the players as was surmised from their comments after the match.
The locker room is devastated
Now, SPORT’s Toni Juanmarti has come forward with a report which describes the mood and the atmosphere in the Barcelona locker room after the knockout from the Champions League.
As per the report, the Barcelona dressing room had collapsed and left feeling devastated after Tuesday night’s outcome against PSG.
The performance in the first leg in Paris last week had reinvigorated the locker room and got them dreaming about success in the Champions League.
With La Liga potentially out of their hands, the players sought success in Europe and the aim was to progress as far as possible in the competition even though they might not necessarily win it.
With caution but with confidence, Barça faced the return leg capable of resisting PSG’s onslaught. The euphoria around them also made imagining themselves in the semi-finals a more realistic exercise.
But after the final whistle last night, the players felt empty. In a matter of an hour’s play, they went from seeing themselves among the four best in Europe to calling the season all but over.
After everything was done, Barcelona stars left the dressing room one by one looking crestfallen. The bitter aftertaste was doubly bitter, because in the end the dressing room already sensed that Xavi’s continuity was much more unlikely after the elimination.
Keep on fighting
While the mood in the dressing room may be at an all-time low, Barcelona players know that they cannot stop fighting, especially with a huge game against Real Madrid coming up in days.
The squad knows that they have to give their all until the end and, above all, secure second place in La Liga, so as to secure a place in the Spanish Super Cup for next season.
