SPORT confidential Valverde plays down the defeat to Madrid
The Barça manager considers the defeat to Real Madrid at Camp Nou to be an accident
He did not call for a special meeting with the squad as he doesn't think the time is right to increase the tension in the squad
Ernesto Valverde had the worst possible start to life as Barcelona manager last night, losing 3-1 to Real Madrid. However, a situation that many would treat as a disaster has not affected Valverde that much. First of all, he sees the defeat as an “accident” more than anything as his team reacted well to going behind to an own goal before letting in “two fantastic goals”.
As a result, Valverde decided not to punish his players for the defeat. There was no meeting with the squad on Monday or pep talk to encourage his players. The squad is definitely affected by the first defeat of the season but they also know there are “another 90 minutes” to put things right”.
Valverde is trying to stay calm despite the unusual and disconcerting start to the season. The club still seems to be in shock from the Neymar transfer and it’s affecting the players as well. However, the new boss will meet with his players on Tuesday to prepare for the return leg of the Super Cup, and everyone is aware than an improvement is needed in a lot of areas.
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