Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman came out happy and especially praised his team’s continued
pressure in the 2-1 victory over Real Sociedad, on Wednesday, in the Spanish First Division, after
the Catalan team made a strong performance after a disastrous start to the season.
Sociedad entered the match while at the top of the league, and advanced through Willian Jose,
but Barcelona overcame the poor start and clinched the victory thanks to the double of Jordi Alba
and Frenkie de Jong before the break.
“The first half was great and we had to score more goals. We played hard and put (Sociedad) under
tremendous pressure and we ran a lot,” Koeman told a news conference.
He continued, as reported by “Reuters”: “Real Sociedad is a great team when the ball was acquired,
but we always regained it and we pressed well. It was an open match because our opponent knows how
to play well, but the match was ours and it was a deserved victory.”
Lionel Messi gave a modest performance and missed many chances and missed many passes,
but Koeman was happy with his captain’s performance.
“This is the team I want to watch. Every player gave everything he had. The most important difference
is our style when losing the ball, Messi worked hard in this aspect and pressed a lot, and all the players
did that too. This is the method that should be followed when the ball is lost,” he added.
Sociedad went to the “Camp Nou” stadium after maintaining his unbeaten record in 9 league matches
but struggled to adapt to Barcelona’s style. His coach, Emmanuel Algasil, praised his opponent.
He said: “We saw the best version of Barcelona in a long time, especially on the defensive side.”
“This reflects the team and its respect for us before the match. We haven’t seen Barcelona so fiercely for
a long time. Even Messi gave everything he had to get the balls back,” he said.
