Xavi: 'It's up to us'

FC Barcelona is in a far better position than ever following Girona's defeat at home to Villarreal on Tuesday, and a win over Almería at the Power Horse Stadium on Thursday (9.30pm CEST) would leave the team four points clear in the race for a Spanish Super Cup berth with just three games to go.

"Our fate is in our own hands and the goal is clear" said coach Xavi Hernandez on Wednesday. "We need to finish second even though that was originally a minimum target. We are thinking about prestige, but also finances, and especially because we want to be involved in every competition next season."

"But it won't be easy. When you look at Almería, they deserved a lot more. And now they can afford to relax because they have nothing to lose. They have competed very well against some of the biggest teams in the competition and will want to win at home to bring some joy to their fans."

"And we will be making changes because the game with Real Sociedad was very intense. Although the fitness stats were good, there's tiredness and fatigue and we need fresh legs."

Many of the questions at the press conference were about the future, where Xavi said "we will try to compete over the next few years. We need stability and patience. The club is in a difficult financial situation, especially compared to the biggest teams in Europe, but although we'll need to adjust to the conditions we will still be competing for big things."