Spanish Supercup leg 2: FC Barcelona 1-1 Athletic Bilbao (agg. 1-5)
Coach Luis Enrique reacts:
I think they played very well. We got Athletic doubting and I could see our opponents were starting to worry. That’s we were after in this game. We competed and made a huge effort.”
“But it all ended when Gerard Piqué was sent off. I can only say well done to Athletic for such a fine performance. Sometimes it’s good to lose in order to appreciate how hard it is to win.”
“The team is united and competitive. There is a very tough league campaign ahead of us. We want to keep bringing joy to the fans and we want to carry on being a team that sets standards around the world.”
Sergio Busquets:
“We tried everything right until the end but it wasn’t to be. I think the game was decided in the first leg and I can only congratulate Athletic for winning the title”
“We scored in the first half and created chances. We started the second half well, we were on fire, but Piqué’s red card changed the game because it was as good as impossible with us a man down”
Dani Alves:
“Athletic competed better than we did. They deserved to win and that’s why I congratulate them”.
“Perhaps we didn’t get enough things right in the two games. Perhaps we didn’t compete as hard we can. We paid the price for the European Super Cup match, and didn’t have much time to prepare … There were all those things but there is no place for excuses”.
“Piqué was furious about the situation. The referee made a decision that did us damage, but that was no excuse either”.
