Valverde on Catalan Super Cup, Todibo debut & Madrid's demise

Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde left Sabadell's Nova Creu Alta stadium satisfied despite his side's 1-0 loss to Girona in the Catalan Super Cup. 

"These type of games are for those that don't play so often in the first team, along with the youngsters," he said. "The important thing is that we looked recognisable. It was important to play against a side as good as Girona to test the performance levels of the players." 

Valverde appreciated that Girona picked a squad with more first team players than Barça: "In the first half, they played with 11 players that could be starters in La Liga, so I think it was a good test for us." 

The coach handed a debut to Jean Clair Todibo... and in midfield: "We put him there because we knew he'd played there for France's youth teams. We wanted to see him in action, give him minutes, but it's normal that he was lost [in midfield] because it's been a long time without playing. At the end he was hurting everywhere and began to have muscle problems [so we took him off]." 

On Real Madrid's Champions League exit, he said: "It's not something that affects us at all. Each team has their own problems and I still see Madrid as a rival in La Liga. After seeing [their loss to Ajax] we must be careful. Madrid had an advantage from the first leg, better than ours, so it's worth remembering. We have a lot of hope put on the Champions League."