FCBARCELONA.CAT

01.09.2008 13:56

Valdés: “We’ve got to put right our mistakes”

Jesús Carrillo

FC Barcelona goalkeeper Víctor Valdés admits that the players didn’t do what coach Josep Guardiola had asked for in yesterday’s game away at Numancia. “We’ll need to do a whole lot better if we want to win,” he commented.

Valdés said that Pep Guardiola’s game plan for the match at Soria was to play the ball wide and keep the lines closer together. However, this was something which in the end the players failed to deliver.

“The players are at fault”

“We didn’t do what we’ve been practising in the preseason,” said the Barça custodian. “So what we need to do is to put right the mistakes we made yesterday.” He was also clear about who was to blame for the defeat: “It’s the players who go out on the park and work for 90 minutes. That means that here we are the only people to blame for the result.”

Unexpected defeat

Víctor Valdés admitted that they hadn’t been expecting to lose away at Numancia: “Neither the players nor the fans saw this coming. I can only hope that members and fans will remain as hopeful as they were before the match at Soria.”

“We’re all part of the defence”

When asked about the performance of the Barça defence, Valdés said that he was very happy with the way things had gone. “However, you have to remember that the defence consists of everyone from the guy leading the line to the goalie,” he added. “We’re all part of it.”

Maximum concentration

Valdés made it clear that the players were fully focussed on the job at hand and were giving 100%. He also discussed the question of tactical changes against a team that scores first and then parks a bus across its goal. “Numancia scored early doors and we fell into the trap, and we didn’t have much luck in front of goal,” he said. “The system isn’t the same as last year.”