Improvement process is longer than we thought in Europe and that’s reality, asserts Xavi Hernandez

While Barcelona are unbeaten and sit at the top of the La Liga table, their form in the Champions League has been far from the same as the La Liga giants are on the verge of another group stage exit. That was despite the fact that they knew a win against Inter Milan would save their skins, but instead, the two sides played out a pulsating and engaging 3-3 draw. It now means that since Bayern Munich are already through, the Camp Nou side’s progress depends on Inter Milan.

However, should the Nerazzurri beat Viktoria Plzen on Matchday 5, then it would confirm Barcelona’s elimination from the Champions League group stages for the second successive season. It saw Xavi place the blame on himself as he admitted that he is angry and believes that the process to improve Barcelona’s team and the squad will take longer in Europe. He also added that there are other competitions, but the team knows the mistakes they made and now they need to improve. 

"We're depending on another team to go through. They are our mistakes, we have to improve them. That's the reality. The process is longer than we thought in Europe. There are other competitions, La Liga, the Copa del Rey, and the Super Copa. We have to insist, persist, and believe. When you draw at home with these fans, with this atmosphere, it is my fault. I am angry. My feeling is that this competition has been, and is still being, cruel with us,” Hernandez said, reported by the BBC.