Barcelona kicked off 2024 with a strong comeback victory over Las Palmas in Gran Canaria. The performance, especially in the first half, was far from convincing from the Catalans, but it mattered little in the end as they emerged victorious.
Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez delivered his assessment of the match in his post-match statements to the media (via Marca). He believes that his side were deserved winners against Garcia Pimienta’s side.
“In the first half, what we missed was the through ball. They had a very high line and we made a mistake in that. From then on, we understood it better in the second half. We did a specific exercise this week to do this.
“We expected to have so much dominance. We did very well in pressuring them after going behind. We played a game to win it and we’re deserved winners.”
Xavi also spoke on Vitor Roque, who played the final 10 minutes against Las Palmas, making his Barcelona debut in the process.
“Roque did well and gave us energy in the final minutes.”
Finally, Xavi provided a positive update on Joao Cancelo’s injury situation, with the Portuguese defender having been forced off in the early stages with an apparent knee problem.
“Cancelo is fine, it doesn’t look serious.”
Barcelona will now look ahead to this weekend’s Copa del Rey clash with Barbastro, as they go in search of winning a competition they last won in 2021.
