We're growing as a team, says Gerardo Martino

Gerardo Martino has spoken to the press the day before his team travels to San Sebastian for the match against Real Sociedad. He expects a difficult match that “will have nothing to do with the cup game. 

This is the league.” He adds that “we have to keep growing as a team. It is now when things get decided, it’s the end of the season”.

 “It's harder to control the game when you play with three strikers"says Martino. "With an extra midfielder our control is better and we run less." He also explained that “we have changed as many as nine players between games in the past but this will become less common from now on.

You won’t be seeing as many changes, although there will always be modifications to maintain the tension among the players and for everyone to feel that they’re playing their part”.

If Barça goes all the way in every competition, then they still have another 21 games to play this season. “Now we have to concentrate on the league” says the manager. “We have to aspire to winning every game we have left. It would be improper not to perform well in San Sebastian. Our intention is to play well and win."

Asked if he feels his team has reached the peak of its form, the manager replied that “we have done well in our last few games, and if we can continue improving and maintain our level for the next 70 or 80 days, then we have a very good chance of achieving things.”

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Messi is the king in goalscoring

Leo Messi is enjoying his best goalscoring streak of the season. He started scoring two goals to Sevilla (Liga), then another at the Anoeta (Cup) followed by two more goals against Rayo Vallecano (Liga). 

In Manchester he added to the streak by scoring the first one against City in the Champions League.

Up until now, Leo Messi had scored in three consecutive games this season. It happened in September against Valencia, Sevilla and Ajax, before he picked up his thigh injury. 

Messi has netted a total of six goals in Barça’s last four matches, and since the beginning of the year, he’s scored 11 times. In total, the player has netted 25 goals this season in all competitions. 

Until now, his only goal on English soil was in the Wembley final in 2011, against Manchester United. More about FC Barcelona summer camps.

Martino talks about his impressions before the match against Manchester City

In the press conference after the 6-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano, Gerardo Martino said that if his team continues to play at this level, “our chances increase in the Champions League” and he explained that he prefers to go into the match against Manchester City with a game like the one against Rayo Vallecano.

When Martino was asked about his team’s performance, he noted that “we play better when we have fun. Today we entertained a lot of people. I hope we can get 20,000 more people to fill the stadium.”

The Argentinian manager went on to say that it’s helpful to score early: “scoring in the second minute of a match gives you quietness and it makes you play differently.”

He continued: “I’d like to think that Messi still has a bit to go before he’s 100 percent fit. If he wants, he’ll break any record he sets his mind to.

He’s only 26 years old.  Barça enjoys him and Argentina does as well,” said Martino.

The manager also revealed that he has yet to make a decision on the starting line-up against Manchester City and he noted that all of his players “have a chance of playing, I could very well commit an injustice.”

When asked about the upcoming showdown with the Enlgish team, the manager believes that the side that enjoys the most possession will have the advantage: “Whoever has the ball will have more chances of winning the game. Both Barça and Manchester City defend by having possession.”

Finally, Martino said, “we’re on form coming into the match against City, this is the perfect moment to try to qualify for the quarter-finals. Most of the players are playing really well. More about FC Barcelona summer camps in Mississauga.

FC Barcelona arrives in San Sebastian

Barça will play the second leg of the Spanish Cup semi-final against Real Sociedad on Wednesday 12th February at 22:00. 

With the 2-0 win from the first leg, Martino's team have travelled to San Sebastian with the aim of consolidating on the  result, and ensure their ticket to the Final. 

The plane carrying the Barça players to San Sebastian landed on Wednesday around mid-day. 

Faced with the possibility of qualifying for the Cup Final, Tata Martino wanted all his players to be present in Anoeta.

Barça’s vice-president, Jordi Mestre headed up the Barcelona expedition to San Sebastian. This is his first trip with the team since taking up his role as vice-president of sports at the end of january. 

Also travelling with the squad are  the Director Jordi Moix and  the Professional Football Sports Director, Andoni Zubizarreta.

After the match against Real Sociedad, Barça will spend the night in San Sebastian, and will return to Barcelona on Thursday morning. 

The team is scheduled to train at the Ciudad Deportiva at 13:00 on Thursday. Read more about FC Barcelona summer camps in Canada.

Xavi is very pleased at Barça

Xavi Hernández gave his analysis of Barça 2013/24 in an interview with FIFA.COM, as well as talking about his past, and his future, with the Club. 

Xavi, who has played 16 seasons in the first team, and over 700 matches in a Barça shirt, has been able to play with some of the most important players in the world of football. 

Ronaldinho, Messi, Ibrahimovic, Iniesta, Neymar..., are some of the players he's shared a dressing room with, but he has no doubt in stating: “The greatest player ever is Messi. He's the best of the lot".

Comparisons are never nice, and Xavi accepts that, when the team is being criticised for their performance and being compared to Barça of previous seasons. “More than Guardiola's time, and he did a great job as coach, as well as the team, who were also fantastic in terms of results and the style of football played, it's the legacy that we left”. “We reached the heights in all aspects: football, tactics, technical and physical abilities. 

We played at a really high level and it's normal I suppose that there will be comparisons made”, he said.

However, Xavi wanted to emphasise the personality of Tata Martino in his quest to lead Barça to sporting success. “He's someone with experience and personality. We have great respect for him and he's showing that he is well capable of coaching Barça”.

In respect to his future,  Xavi would like to retire at FC Barcelona. “I would like to retire at Barça and to be linked for many years to what I believe is the best team in the World".

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