Barcelona defender Jules Kounde has told the media that his side must be more focused defensively, which he compared unfavourably with last season.
The French defender, who returned from injury against Real Sociedad last weekend, admitted that not all was rosy with their defending currently. Last season Barcelona did not concede double figures in La Liga until May, but already the Blaugrana have let in 12 this campaign.
Ahead of Barcelona’s clash with Shakhtar Donetsk, Kounde was asked if there were doubts created by their struggles against La Real, in spite of their win.
“There are no doubts. We are not comfortable but we have no doubts. We are positive. We have to continue working and throughout the season there are games in which you do not play well and you have a team in front of you that plays very well. We showed that we know how to suffer and respond to difficulties.”
He also agreed with President Joan Laporta that the Blaugrana did not play well.
“Sometimes throughout the season there are games in which you don’t play well but you get the three points. It happened last year and it can happen again. The important thing is to recognise where we can improve. We have to continue suffering together.”
Not only did Barcelona barely threaten La Real in attack, but they could scarcely hang onto the ball at times, and the Txuri Urdin press forced the Blaugrana into a number of errors. He was asked why they struggled so much.
“I think it’s a collective issue. La Real made it very difficult for us to get the ball out and we lost many balls on throw-ins. It’s a matter of communicating and always being in motion. A matter of intensity. These are things that we have to improve and I’m sure we are going to do that tomorrow.”
Barcelona have suffered from a number of injuries too this season, meaning Xavi Hernandez has struggled to rotate properly in recent weeks, with the likes of Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix racking up minutes. Yet Kounde did not fall on that as an excuse.
“From my point of view it is more a lack of focus than fatigue. During a game we need to be more concentrated defensively. Sometimes we open ourselves up too much and concede more than last year. We have incorporated new players. We are still a young team with large margin of progression. We have to correct these details.”
The French defender has never shirked responsibility, and typically deals with problems head on. Xavi himself will no doubt be glad to have more resources at his disposal, but the Blaugrana were given a certain dispensation in recent weeks, whereas with their injured players back, their margin for error will decrease in the eyes of the public. While results remain king, Barcelona have undoubtedly shifted towards a more adventurous approach, but Kounde perhaps hints that they are doing so a little too much.
