Koeman talks de Jong, Eric Garcia, Depay, Demir following draw against Athletic Bilbao

Ronald Koeman and his Barcelona side endured a tough night at the San Mames against a gritty Athletic club Bilbao side. The visitors never looked comfortable, yet somehow managed to scrape out a draw against Los Leones.

Koeman seemed satisfied with the result, knowing that Barcelona did not show enough to take home all three points against the hosts, who played very well and had the support of their home fans for the first time in over a year.

Courtesy of a Memphis Depay equalizer towards the end of the game, Barcelona managed to nick a draw in their second game of the season. This campaign is going to be gruelling, and yesterday’s match was the perfect example.

Here are coach Ronald Koeman’s thoughts on the game.

On the result: “The draw is fair, I have seen Athletic at a very good level, playing here is very complicated.”

On the performance: “It was a great game. It was complicated at the beginning, they pressed us well and we couldn’t get out. We must know when to build from behind and when to play the long ball.”

On de Jong: “De Jong has been better in the second half than in the first half. He breaks lines. Overall, he’s played a great game.”

On Eric Garcia: “Before the game we heard the news of Eric Garcia’s grandfather’s death. He is a great professional, he has played a great game. Too bad for the red, we are happy with him and we wish him the best.”

On Griezmann’s involvement: “They put a lot of pressure on us and the strikers then came into play less. Offensively, Griezmann didn’t have many chances either.”

On Depay: “I’m not surprised. In a short time, he has shown his quality.”

On Yusuf Demir’s debut: “Demir has had a hard time in the big San Mamés because he’s still very young but it is very good for him to have made his debut here to begin to adapt to football like this.”

Source: Barça TV+