Barcelona Boss Ernesto Valverde Delighted With Catalan Derby Win Over Girona

Barcelona were victorious in the Catalan derby away from home against Girona - two own-goals either side of half time and Luis Suarez with the third sealed the win for the La Liga giants.

Barca boss Ernesto Valverde, as reported by Football Espana, expressed his delight over the victory, outlining the pressure they were under to get the win with both Atletico and Real Madrid winning their respective games.

Valverde said: "There was some pressure on us as both Madrid and Atletico had won."

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He added: "Still, we have managed to take the lead, playing with our heads above all, but also with our hearts."

Barcelona and Argentina forward Lionel Messi had a quiet night - despite the win - but that was down to the impressive man-marking from Girona midfielder Pablo Maffeo. Valverde insisted that although Messi had no direct impact on the game, he did well to drag his marker into positions to help the team in other areas of the pitch.

Valverde said: "Man-marking Messi? It can happen, but it’s also true that this makes for moments when he can drag his marker out of position and take advantage."

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He added: "Messi came to me in the 10th minute to ask how I wanted him to deal with his marker. Messi did well, he was calm and helped the team."

Uruguay international Luis Suarez sealed the win for the away side with an impressive finish to the near post after latching onto a lobbed through pass from Sergi Roberto. 

Suarez is getting back to his best in terms of form and the Barca boss insists it's a shame that he couldn't get a second to boost his confidence further.

Valverde said: "Suarez? A striker lives for goals, and it’s clear that the relationship Luis has with goals is wonderful for us. His aggression in the last few yards of the pitch is impressive. It’s too bad that he didn’t score another goal to regain even more confidence."