Luis Enrique: Score reflects what happened on the field

The FC Barcelona manager explains that despite the rout, his team will go into the second leg at Espanyol in search of the knockout punch

The gravitas of FC Barcelona head coach Luis Enrique was on full display. Sitting straight faced and serious in the press room at Camp Nou after the Catalans erupted for four unanswered goals to summarily dispatch cross-city rivals RCD Espanyol in the first leg of their last 16 tie in the Copa del Rey, the Barça manager was unambiguous.

“The scoreboard reflects our superiority,” he said.

Luis Enrique transmitted an air of content but was all business. The day before in his pre-game press conference, he had declared that his team would come out to play as if there were no second leg.

His players had delivered.

Below are some of the highlights of what he had to say about the 4–1 victory:

On Espanyol:

“They defended well.”

On how the game unfolded:

“There were moments when the rhythm of the game was too fast for our liking.”

“We reached our objective regarding what we wanted out of the game.”

“It’s normal to have a lot of pressure because we have a special rivalry, but you have to look at it in a positive light.”

On the second leg:

“Despite all this, we’re going to Cornellà to win, because the tie isn’t over.”

On the debuts of Arda Turan and Aleix Vidal:

“I liked both of them.”

“Arda provides solutions when we have the ball.”

“Aleix got some very good minutes. He didn’t get many but he’ll show us how good he is as the season goes on.”

On the play of Andrés Iniesta:

“Iniesta has unique field vision, Xavi being the lone exception.”

“He can get assists, recover the ball and he has a fantastic idea of what football is. He’s one of a kind.”

“He’s magic.”

from News at FCB http://ift.tt/1POxYCB