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The Los Colchoneros coach has remained defiant that his side are still alive in the Copa del Rey despite losing 3-1 at home to Barça in the first leg.
Atlético Madrid managed to avoid another 6-1 decimation by Barcelona but it wasn’t an incredibly stark improvement either as they crumbled 3-1 at home in the first leg of the Copa del Rey last 16.
Despite the defeat, coach Javier Aguirre is adamant that Los Colchoneros are not out of the tournament yet with the return tie still to come.
“Barcelona were clearly superior. The competition has now become more complicated, but we are not going to throw in the towel. We are going to try and fight for it,” he said during the post-match conference.
“We were never in the game in the first half. With the talent and the genius that Barça have in their team, they made life difficult for us and we showed them too much respect, and the first goal cost us.
“We approach the second half with more enthusiasm. We needed to push forward but it was over when they won a penalty. With ten men and 2-0 down against Barcelona, we were in disarray.
“But we still held together and managed to pull a goal back. And when we went all out for an equaliser, they hit us with another goal.”
As expected, Aguirre had full praise for the Blaugrana's hat-trick hero, Lionel Messi.
“He is an extraordinary player and he is in great form. He is carrying a lot of confidence and above all, he can score goals. He’s a complete player, without doubt,” he concluded.
Atlético Madrid managed to avoid another 6-1 decimation by Barcelona but it wasn’t an incredibly stark improvement either as they crumbled 3-1 at home in the first leg of the Copa del Rey last 16.
Despite the defeat, coach Javier Aguirre is adamant that Los Colchoneros are not out of the tournament yet with the return tie still to come.
“Barcelona were clearly superior. The competition has now become more complicated, but we are not going to throw in the towel. We are going to try and fight for it,” he said during the post-match conference.
“We were never in the game in the first half. With the talent and the genius that Barça have in their team, they made life difficult for us and we showed them too much respect, and the first goal cost us.
“We approach the second half with more enthusiasm. We needed to push forward but it was over when they won a penalty. With ten men and 2-0 down against Barcelona, we were in disarray.
“But we still held together and managed to pull a goal back. And when we went all out for an equaliser, they hit us with another goal.”
As expected, Aguirre had full praise for the Blaugrana's hat-trick hero, Lionel Messi.
“He is an extraordinary player and he is in great form. He is carrying a lot of confidence and above all, he can score goals. He’s a complete player, without doubt,” he concluded.
