Manager Javi Calleja underlines Villarreal’s offensive aspects during the match against FC Barcelona

Villarreal manager Javi Calleja underlined the spectacular performance put in by the Yellows against the LaLiga leaders. Despite that, the head coach was left with a bittersweet taste: “A point against Barça is positive, but it doesn’t feel like that after how the game went. We did a lot of things positively. We pulled back a match where we were losing 0-2. The team was brave searching for the win. Scoring four goals against Barcelona has a lot of merit. A lot of points are getting away from us because of small details,” he commented.

For Calleja, Villarreal deserved the win: “The most normal thing would have been for us to have taken away the three points. It’s a hard blow because of how it happened, but you have to value getting a point against the leader. When you score so many goals and you don’t get three pints it’s because you’re making defensive mistakes. It’s clear where we need to improve.”

According to the coach, the blow should not lower the Yellows morale: “The sending off hurt us, despite the little time that was left. It made us suffer. It’s very difficult to face a team like Barça. The team defended with intensity, but Messi’s free-kick came and then they had a corner which shouldn’t have happened. We have been like this for all the year and we haven’t dropped our heads. The team has to pick up courage and continue going into games like this.”

To conclude, Calleja underlined his optimism ahead of the future: “I think that the team will stay in the top flight. When you play like that against a team like Barcelona, you have to take many positive conclusions away. The attacking level we showed was high. We’re lacking balance with the defensive aspect. We have a lot of matches left and a lot of points still to win. We want to bottle what we’re doing well and get better at the back. We need to stop them doing so much damage to us. From all these goals we have let in, there are many that can be avoided. They are small details.”