Xavi under pressure as Barcelona visit Valencia after two defeats

Barcelona: Another poor performance by Barcelona in a defeat at modest Antwerp has increased the pressure on Xavi Hernandez to turn things around.

The 3-2 loss in Belgium on Wednesday didn’t mean much in practical terms. The final group game of the Champions League came with Barcelona already assured of a spot in the knockout rounds for the first time in three seasons.

However, Xavi could surely have used a good result because his star-filled side had just been outplayed by Spanish league leader Girona 4-2 last weekend, a setback that dealt a blow to its domestic title defense.

After falling at Antwerp, which finished the group in last place, the Barcelona-based sports papers opened fire on their team. “No Forgiveness” was Mundo Deportivo’s headline, while Sport went with “Enough Is Enough!”

“The defeat that really hurt was the one against Girona,” Xavi said this week after trying to find the bright side of his side’s stumble against Antwerp that also cost the club a couple of million euros (dollars) in potential prize money.

Xavi is calling Barcelona’s Spanish league game at Valencia on Saturday “a final” while insisting that he has the backing of the club and his teammates.

The loss at home to regional rival Girona left Barcelona in fourth place at seven points adrift of the surprising leader. Real Madrid is in second place, five points clear of Barcelona, while Atletico Madrid is level on points with Barcelona in third place but has an extra game to play.

The good news for Barcelona is Valencia has troubles of its own.

Rub n Baraja’s team is winless in its last four league games and has

lost its last five meetings with Barcelona since a draw in December 2020.

Xavi’s status has also been damaged by speculation in Spain’s sports media regarding the squad list he gave for the Antwerp visit.

The list initially did not include team heavyweights Robert Lewandowski and Ilkay Gundogan, but they were both then included and played.