Barcelona had not soccer this lovely in a really very long time as they grilled Royal Antwerp 5-0 at dwelling for the opening matchday of the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League season.
This was their second successive 5-0 win after the stellar efficiency in opposition to Actual Betis on the weekend.
The Catalans had the sport in wrap after the primary half as Joao Felix opened the scoring within the eleventh minute earlier than Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha (via an personal objective) adopted. Gavi struck within the 54th minute, and Felix then put it to mattress via the fifth.
Xavi was evidently proud following this sport and final, and mentioned it was his greatest spell but “as Barça’s supervisor.
“Very pleased with the outcome. Saturday and in the present day have been my greatest video games as a coach. An enchancment in the best way we play. It’s a delight to see the staff like this. We should proceed,” he mentioned.
Xavi additionally added, “An important factor is to proceed at this stage and with the identical enthusiasm and need. Our positional assault was unhealthy final season, however we have now improved this season.”
On Gundogan, Cancelo, and Felix
Necessary components of those video games have been Joao Cancelo and Ilkay Gundogan, each beforehand from Manchester Metropolis. Xavi commented on their previous underneath Pep Guardiola, saying, “Gundogan and Cancelo come from Guardiola, and we all know how nicely his staff performs soccer.”
“Gundogan is a superb participant. You do not want to present him loads of directions. He is aware of how one can play simply and with out complexity. Identical with Cancelo. They’re an amazing addition,” he added.
Xavi additionally spoke about Felix, who has gained back-to-back Man of the Match awards for Barcelona – each in his first two begins on the membership, and mentioned, “Felix understands his position completely.”
Supply: BarçaTV+
