Barcelona captain Carles Puyol has praised Real Sociedad after the Basque side condemned the Blaugrana to their first defeat of the season.
Lionel Messi and Pedro had given Tito Vilanova's side a 2-0 lead inside 25 minutes, but two Chori Castro strikes and a late winner from Imanol Agirretxe gave the Erreala a shock victory.
And the instrumental defender has admitted that Philippe Montanier's men played well even before Gerard Pique was sent off for Barca.
“Our team has given everything,” he told reporters. “They tightened up a lot at the back, and we suffered as a result.
“But they did play very well. They got back back into the game even when we were 2-0 up. You have to credit them for that.
“I thought Pique's sending off was unjust. I have not seen it since, but on the pitch it looked harsh.
“We have to keep working hard though and go to Malaga and try to win.
“We believe that we are at a great level at the moment.”
