Xavi: 'We need our fans'

FC Barcelona are finally back at Montjuïc for the first time in 38 days, and the visitors are Villarreal. "We are happy to be back at home, with our people" said coach Xavi Hernández the day before, admitting that in this game he needs to see a reaction after the defeat to Athletic in the cup.

Villarreal struggling

"Villarreal are going through a bad patch" he said. "But Marcelino's teams are always very aggressive and well-organised, and work hard on defence. They still have a lot of standout players who can make all the difference."

"We still have every chance of catching up in the league and these next two games at home are a key part of that. And the team is very united, we have a very strong-minded squad. I have never seen a squad with so much human quality in my whole career."

Young guns

On the new generation of youngsters that have been breaking into the team, he commented that "at their ages they shouldn't be shouldered with these responsibilities, but given our current situation it's what we have to do. They are ready to play and a lot of credit has to go to Lamine, Cubarsí and Fort. They are the present and future of the club and that's very good news for Barça".