HOME > NEWS > BARCELONAS INIESTA DEFIANT AFTER PAINFUL LOSS TO OSASUNA

Barcelona's Iniesta defiant after 'painful loss' to Osasuna

Iniesta defiant after Barca's 'painful loss' to Osasuna

Posted: 2012-02-12 13:06

Barcelona's hopes of retaining their Spanish title are in tatters after their shock 3-2 defeat in Pamplona and Andres Iniesta believes that they now need to focus on Europe

Iniesta has called on Barcelona's players to quickly put Saturday's 'painful' 3-2 La Liga defeat at Osasuna behind them in order to focus on their midweek Champions League last 16 meeting with Bayer Leverkusen.

The loss in Pamplona means that the Catalans now have a mountain to climb in order to retain their Spanish title, with leaders Real Madrid now in a position to stretch their lead at the top of the table to 10 points with a win over Levante at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday evening.

Iniesta freely admits that he and his colleagues are hurting at the moment but knows that they can ill afford to wallow in self-pity if they are to successfully defend their European crown.

“It’s a painful loss," the Spain international confessed to his club's official website after the match. "We reacted [in the second half] but it wasn’t enough.

"We have to keep on fighting until the end [but] now we have to prepare for the Champions League match."

Iniesta's team-mate Isaac Cuenca insisted that Barcelona's belief in themselves had not been affected by the damaging defeat at the Reyno de Navarra.

“We’re going to Leverkusen with a lot of enthusiasm to try and win," the forward declared. "We know what kind of team we are and we must keep on battling."

After Tuesday's trip to Germany, Barcelona return to La Liga action against Valencia at Camp Nou next weekend.

Comment on this article:

TERMS OF USE: The comments posted below do not reflect the views of KickOff.com. Users are reminded that no misuse of this comment facility will be tolerated. Any abusive, racist or inflammatory comments will be deleted and the user banned. Please report abusive posts to editor@kickoff.com

Zosha: 2012-02-12 14:06

Well spoken sonny guess most would not like to admit that Real are taking it home this season.

brazilitto : 2012-02-12 14:36

Now Jose Morihno can quits Real Madrid with the lig medal he's been craving for. But I must salute Barca, u gave that Portuguese master some tough times. Who can forget the lessons, yaaaaa just concentrate on Europe.

TP : 2012-02-12 15:49

This League is for Real to lose.

Minus the 3 points they are to lose against Barcelona but they still have a good chance to win it.

vini da legend : 2012-02-12 16:14

cnt w8t 4vv 2win d league,jst kiding!itz stil 2early 2say madrid hv won it,nah nt nw nt whle pep is stil arwnd

Baetizy : 2012-02-12 16:17

Owaii...barca! barca my foot,while thy were baskin in their victory n talkin rubish The Madrid Boss ws preparin hs team,nw Real is excelin nd thy're (barca)getin their a*s whipd

Lance d\'Bucs : 2012-02-12 17:14

I feel that Barca were unlucky to loose, however the loss doesn't make Pep a bad coach or Barca a bad team.. It is just one of those days.. Messi & Co. will pick themselves up and do their utmost best.. I'm a Real Madrid aka Los Blancos fan.. !Hala Madrid!

vader..... : 2012-02-13 00:14

Lol barca are starting to lose coz they found out that they being compared to SA's lotto champions "bucsalona"(I say lotto champs coz luck is mostly on their side) shame barca the curse will remain ... Viva Madrid!!!!!!!

Jealous Down: 2012-02-13 07:14

No one is unbeatable, football is a game of moments... You can be at your best for a certain time but you can't be the best forever. Barca now have a mountain to climb, 10 points gap is not a child's play. Let's if they can close the gap since they were labelled best of all time. Europe will be more tougher than La Liga I think, be careful not only to end up with Copa Del Rey.