FC Barcelona had another glorious night in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday as the Catalans beat Paris Saint Germain 3-2 in the first away leg of the quarter-finals.
Naturally, Xavi was ecstatic with the result, and as SPORT has reported, the Barcelona head coach shared these feelings with the media after the end of the match.
Xavi admitted that nothing was concluded as yet, as Barcelona still had to take care of the second leg, but he still was very proud of his team’s efforts:
“There’s nothing done yet; we’re only halfway there. But it’s a moment to feel proud of the team. We have to feel proud to say that Barcelona is alive. It’s a victory that generates more excitement among Barcelona fans.”
The Barcelona trainer was also very happy with how his team had reacted after going down a goal in the second half:
“In recent years, we used to collapse when we were behind on the scoreboard. Today we took a step forward. We matured the game a lot, we had days to work on it, both in attack and defense.”
Successfully dealing with PSG’s high press was another aspect of his team commended by Xavi: “Another positive note is how we managed to escape the high pressure from a team that presses you so much, which is very difficult, and we did it very well.”
“What happened to us in the first ten minutes of the second half cannot happen. If we don’t defend well, in the Champions League, you suffer and pay for it.”
Keeping the PSG attack, especially Mbappe, in check was expected to be a very difficult task for the team, and Xavi explained how his defenders were able to keep him quiet:
“We stopped PSG, not just Mbappé. Araujo and Koundé were very focused on his movements because he’s exceptional in that. And all the players were very supportive.”
Further commenting on the game, Xavi believed teamwork was key as his team got a positive result out of this match:
“I highlight the team effort. That’s what I told them in the talk: we had to be more of a team than ever. We’ve done immense work, and that’s been the key. Everyone is ready to come on, whether it’s for ten, fifteen, or twenty minutes. The substitutions were very positive, and Pedri, Christensen, Joao… made the difference.”
Raphinha was clearly the most influential player for Barcelona in this match as he scored the first two goals for this team, and Xavi was full of praise for him in this presser:
“It’s moving because he has a huge heart. [He] earned it through a lot of hard work, plays on the right, on the left, is fast, has goals… He played one of his best games since he’s been at Barça.”
Pau Cubarsi was another player that Xavi spoke highly of for his performance in this game:
“He’s at an extraordinary level at just seventeen years old. I’m running out of compliments and adjectives to describe him. [He] shows personality, does everything well, wins duels, hardly gets beaten on the back because he’s well positioned and lined up. One of the things that makes me most proud of all this is also that we’re playing with teenagers.”
Despite the good result obtained by his side, Xavi was still very wary of what is in store for the second leg of the tie:
“I don’t think the result will change the dynamic, I know Luis Enrique well and he won’t give anything away. We’re facing a very tough opponent, one of the best in the world, and we’ll have to be better on Tuesday.”
Still, Barcelona will have the advantage of playing at the Montjuic for this match, and the Barcelona head coach also mentioned this in his presser:
“We suffered a lot today. We also enjoyed the victory, and it’s very important. But PSG is still the favorite, they have many chances to advance. We have a slight advantage with the away goal, and we’ll also play in front of our fans. I hope Montjuïc will be a cauldron.”
