Barça and Espanyol will be meeting twice in the same week, but Motta is aware that the game on Saturday is the most important of the two derbies, with the league title at stake.
Motta was asked what he made of the fact that the city of Barcelona would be witnessing two derbies
in a week, and made it clear in his reply that Tuesday’s Copa Catalunya final will be
“totally different. That is just one extra game, more for keeping us in our paces, but we are
really looking forward to the League match. That will be THE match.”
Warm up
Motta knows all about the rivalry between Barça and Espanyol, and spoke about the
latter’s president, Daniel Sánchez Llibre, who was disappointed at the Camp Nou last season
to hear Barça fans chanting that they hoped Espanyol would get relegated. “It is the fans
that chant these things” said Motta. “The players always respect each other. I think it
is important to raise the temperature for games but there are limits, otherwise things happen like
they did in Getafe. But it should be a very good game.”
Thinking about Madrid?
“It is important that they (Real Madrid) slip up, but
it is more important for us to win, because if they lose, but so do we, then it would all be for
nothing” said Motta, when asked how close an eye the players would be keeping on the Madrid
result. “Of course we are depending on what they do, but it is more important for us to
concentrate on what we have to do ourselves.”
Madrid travel to Zaragoza, and that “is a difficult game and they know that because
Zaragoza is a very good team and has a good chance. Let’s just wait and see what
happens.”
No need for motivation
Motta does not feel his team is lacking in any motivation for the big derby. “It is an
important game and it is the last of the season at the Camp Nou in front of our people. We do not
have to worry about what other people are saying.”
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Motta silent on future
The midfielder did not want to discuss his future at the club, and when pressed to comment on the
issue he said “I have not spoken to anybody yet, let’s wait until the end of the
competition.”
There have also been rumours in the press that Barça are negotiating an exchange with
Arsenal, whereby Eto’o will go to London and the French striker would come to the Camp Nou.
But Motta did not feel it would be appropriate to comment on that possibility, and merely said that
“Eto’o is one of the best strikers in the world.”