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01.03.2007 00:33
Rijkaard congratulates team on win
“You have to congratulate the team on the work they put in”. Frank Rijkaard was naturally delighted with the performance this evening and has noted a mood of confidence following qualification for the semi finals.
Rijkaard’s idea of playing a 3-4-3 worked a treat at La Romareda, and Barça bounced back from home defeat to Zaragoza to qualify for the last four of the Cup.
All systems go
Playing with three defenders and no full backs was the unexpected choice of tactic that Rijkaard decided to employ at La Romareda. He explained that “this system requires individual effort. If anybody doesn’t do their job, a team-mate will notice it”. Rijkaard added that the team’s first half “was, apart from a few minor details, very good”.
Harder after the break
But Zaragoza were determined to make up for early disappointment and played it particularly tough in the second half. The FC Barcelona coach himself said that “at 2-0, they put more energy into the game and we relaxed a bit from our positional sense and did not enjoy as much control of the ball”.
Paying attention
Despite the complexities of Rijkaard’s explanations, football is still a simple game. Whoever scores the most goals, wins. Not that Rijkaard doesn’t know that too. “The goal we let in may have been through a lack of paying attention, but we had scored two goals and they were perhaps the result of them not paying attention themselves. Nothing matters as long as we score more goals. Their goal was the result of a move in which nobody touched the ball, and Jorquera did not have a very good view of it”.
Laporta: “Most of all I congratulate Rijkaard”
The president of FC Barcelona was delighted that his club will be in the hat for the semi final
draw. Laporta congratulated the players “but most of all, Rijkaard, who played some brave
tactics. He has proven today that when risks have to be taken, he knows how to take them”.
Still excited about the possibility of winning the Cup this year, Laporta added “Barça played
a great game and showed that we have plenty of quality”.
There are more important games to come though, and Laporta believes “the game with Zaragoza was important to show that we are capable of coming back from difficult situations”.
The president also had words to say on the serious incidents in the game between Betis and Sevilla, saying “they were pitiful events. We have always maintained a position in opposition to any kind of violence inside stadiums.”
There are more important games to come though, and Laporta believes “the game with Zaragoza was important to show that we are capable of coming back from difficult situations”.
The president also had words to say on the serious incidents in the game between Betis and Sevilla, saying “they were pitiful events. We have always maintained a position in opposition to any kind of violence inside stadiums.”
