Xavi: 'If we're not taking chances, at least we need soul'

Raphinha once and Sergi Roberto twice scored the goals that earned three crucial points on Wednesday at home to Almería, but it was by no means an easy win against the side that's bottom of the table. And Xavi Hernández was anything but happy with what he witnessed, especially in the first 45 minutes.

"It was unacceptable and I told them so in my half-time team-talk" he said. "If we aren't going to take our chances, at least we need to be aggressive and show some soul. Unless we run like animals we won't get anywhere. Unless we leave our skin out there we won't win anything. We need to wake up. It's not a football issue, it's about soul. In the second half we did show some soul and that's how we won the match. That bit I did like a lot."

"Last year we won two trophies because we put our souls into it, we gave it our all. That's my responsibility and I won't let it happen again. But although we need to be self--critical, i still think we were fully deserved winners tonight."

"We're getting punished a lot by isolated errors. Unfortunate plays where we're giving things away and that are making it very hard for us to win matches. This game with Almería may have been very good for us. The first half was exactly what we are not supposed to do, the second was exactly what we should be doing."

Xavi ended with a few words for Sergi Roberto, who he feels "sets an example. He is a captain in capital letters, whether or not he plays. I'm very happy for him."