Xavi unhappy with Barca display in Clasico win

Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez lamented his side's show successful possession contempt a 1-0 Copa del Rey semifinal archetypal limb triumph against Real Madrid connected Thursday.

Barca had mislaid their past 2 games but produced a spirited antiaircraft show to bushed Madrid astatine the Santiago Bernabeu, with Eder Militao's archetypal fractional ain extremity the quality betwixt the 2 teams.

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Xavi's broadside registered conscionable 35% possession, their lowest successful the past 8 seasons and lowest crossed their past 685 games for which information is available. Their erstwhile debased was 44%.

"I americium satisfied with the effort and however we defended," Xavi said successful a quality league aft the game. "We minimised Madrid's chances astatine their ain ground, wherever they usually make a lot.

"It was a affirmative result, which I americium blessed about, but we person enactment to bash connected the ball. The program was to person agelong spells of possession and support with the ball, but we couldn't.

"Normally, we are amended successful possession, much precise. We didn't marque bully choices today, we didn't person patience with the ball, we didn't triumph the carnal battles successful their half, but determination are different aspects of the crippled I liked."

However, contempt giving up possession to Madrid, Barca did not let their opponents to registry a azygous changeable connected target.

It was the archetypal clip since a 2-0 nonaccomplishment to Paris Saint-Germain successful past season's Champions League that Madrid person failed to enactment the goalkeeper, portion they person registered a changeable connected extremity successful each of their past 294 location games for which information is available.

Xavi said Barca -- who were without Andreas Christensen, Pedri, Ousmane Dembele and Robert Lewandowski done wounded -- had not betrayed their benignant but were forced to support by Carlo Ancelotti's side.

"The hostile makes you play similar that," helium added. "Today they dominated america with the ball. We couldn't find the solution with the shot by beating that precocious press. It was hard for us.

"We could person drawn, but defensively we were spectacular. I inactive deliberation Madrid are strong, they usually make a batch of chances astatine location but contiguous they hardly created any."

Prior to the game, Xavi had said Madrid, arsenic LaLiga and Champions League holders, were favourites for the necktie and helium maintained that is inactive the lawsuit up of the 2nd limb astatine Camp Nou connected April 5.

Before then, the teams conscionable successful LaLiga connected March 19, besides astatine Camp Nou. Xavi's team, who person present won 3 of the past 4 Clasicos, are presently 7 points wide astatine the apical of the table.

There was further past made successful Thursday's win, with Barca skipper Sergio Busquets surpassing Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos to go the highest ever appearance-maker successful the past of the Clasico.

Busquets, 34, played against Madrid for the 46th clip -- Messi and Ramos some made 45 appearances successful the fixture -- and could look them 2 much times successful the adjacent month.

"I americium blessed to person played much Clasicos than anyone else," helium told reporters. "As a player, these are the games you love. I americium fortunate to person been astatine the champion nine successful the satellite for galore years and I americium inactive enjoying it."