Ernesto Valverde believes Barcelona would have achieved so much more if they did a better job at beating Liverpool in Champions League semi-final last season.<\/p>\n
After losing 4-0 away at Anfield despite winning 3-0 at home, Barcelona went on to win LaLiga but suffer another defeat against Valencia in Copa Del Ray final.<\/p>\n
“Until Liverpool, we were having an incredible Champions League campaign,” Valverde said on Barcelona’s official website.<\/p>\n
“At Anfield, we had chances but they scored early on and psychologically we started worrying that what happened in Rome might happen again. There was a moment of weakness and we paid for it. It was one of the toughest moments of the year.<\/p>\n
“We must admit that the hit we took in Liverpool meant our morale was down going into Copa. If we’d won over Liverpool, we’d have won the Copa too.<\/p>\n
Valverde admits, the 2019\/2020 season has been tough, but he believes it will get better with times.<\/p>\n
“We didn’t start well, but we’ve gradually been getting better. We’re top of the table but there’s still a long way to go. This year is tighter than other years. It’s harder to win games.<\/p>\n
“Next year, we need to be more on top of certain key moments, and we especially need to be careful not to leak two goals in a matter of minutes.<\/p>\n
“You are always going to need a little bit of luck, but we’ll try to get fortune to tip our way and we’ll do everything we can to make that happen.”<\/p>\n
Despite inconsistent performance from the team, Valverde thinks new players Antoine Griezmann,\u00a0Frenkie de Jong,\u00a0Neto\u00a0and\u00a0Junior Firpo\u00a0are doing better than he expected.<\/p>\n
“Antoine Griezmann\u00a0is not just a goalscorer but also a hard worker,” he noted.<\/p>\n
“He knows how to drop into midfield, and he knows the moment in which he has to help the full-back. We are very happy with him.<\/p>\n
“Frenkie de Jong\u00a0covers a lot of ground and he is playing well. However, he still has more to give, especially inside the opponents’ box.<\/p>\n
“Neto\u00a0and\u00a0Junior\u00a0are performing as expected. When\u00a0Junior\u00a0has come in for\u00a0Jordi Alba, he has done well, and he is getting more and more involved.<\/p>\n
“As for\u00a0Neto, he is always ready to come in for Marc Andre Ter Stegen and he is a very competitive player.”<\/p>\n
Barcelona will travel to Espanyol next week to resume LaLiga campaign.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"