 |
| *Martino |
Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino has given his players a
two-week deadline to get back to their best after their Primera Division title
hopes took another hit on Saturday with a 1-0 defeat at Real Valladolid.
Despite the gulf in the table between the sides, it was
third-bottom Valladolid
who emerged victorious thanks to Fausto Rossi's first-half strike.
Barca have now lost three of their last six matches in La
Liga and have dropped to third as a result, a point behind the top two of Real
and Atletico Madrid, with Carlo Ancelotti's men still to play this weekend.
And although Martino has not given up on retaining their
league crown, he knows his side must find some form before their March 23
meeting with leaders Real at the Bernabeu.
"The team lacked ideas against Valladolid but not intensity," he told
the club's official website.
"We completely failed in generating play and that's
what stopped us from getting the result.
"We lacked what makes us Barca: good elaboration in our
build-up, finding spaces, breaking through on the wings and having depth. But
we didn't lack attitude.
"We had very few chances of actually running at goal.
We almost always had to fight against 10 defenders. A good solution would have
been creating more space.
"Our obligation is to fight for La Liga until the last
moment and that's what we're going to do. We have to win at the Bernabeu
regardless.
"Currently we aren't at our best and we have to find
our best form in order to play against teams like Real Madrid. We have 15 days
to do it."
Barca will aim to defend their 2-0 lead over Manchester City
in the Champions League last 16 on Tuesday before taking on Osasuna in the
league ahead of the Real showdown.
No comments:
Post a Comment