Ronald Koeman protests: “Do we have players to play Tiki Taka?”

For the second successive home game, Barcelona struggled to create chances as they fell to a meagre 1-1 draw against 14th placed Granada. The Spanish media has made it very clear that Ronald Koeman’s job is in jeopardy. Monday’s draw further mounts the pressure on the Dutchman’s shoulder.

The visitors got the early lead in the second minute following a sweetly slotted header by Duarte. For 90 minutes, the Catalans battled it out to create chances but struggled to do so. In the end, it was Ronald Araujo who carried the Barcelona team both in attack and defence to help them register another draw in this year’s La Liga.

Koeman spoke to the press after the disappointing result. Here are the major takeaways from Ronald Koeman’s postmatch press conference.

On the expectations from the game: “Before the game, we were hoping for a win, but after the bad start and the time wasting from the opponent we couldn’t get what we wanted.”

On the performance of the team: “We must appreciate the team for their personality and determination until the very end.”

On Granada’s tactics: “Granada closed off all spaces and made it tight for us. We tried to overcome that with crosses.”

On the time-wasting controversy: “Granada wasted time since the second minute, when they scored. The people in charge must do something about time wasting. It has to be changed; we cannot continue like this.”

On the hero of the night ‘Ronald Araujo’: “Araujo is a great player and we need him a lot, especially in the current situation.”

On the early goal conceded: “From the start of the game we were in a compromised position which made it difficult for us.”

On whether they deserved the point: “We deserved the draw. We deserved to score the equalizer much earlier, but we couldn’t.”

On the absence of ‘individual skill’: “We lack players who have individual skill. Players who are good in one on ones. We are playing with whoever we have.”

On his thoughts on the result: “I think we did well tonight. But you can’t be happy with a draw at home in front of your own fans.”

On not playing tiki-taka: “Look at the players. Look at the squad list. Do we have the players to play ‘tiki-taka’?”

On the style of play: “We try to play with our own style, but sometimes we are required to change it. Overall, I think we did very well.”

On his future: “I will not talk about my future anymore.”

On the players available: “We don’t have the players who have the ability to win one on ones. Coutinho usually leans to the centre. Ansu and Dembele are more suitable, but they aren’t available.”

Source: Barça TV+