FCBARCELONA.CAT

31.08.2009 23:59

Ibra pleased with first goal

Anna Segura

Zlatan Ibrahimovic was delighted to score his first official goal for FC Barcelona as he added the third in a convincing win against Sporting de Gijón on Monday evening in Camp Nou.

The Swedish striker made it 3-0 when he dived forward to head home from close range and he was pleased to have opened his account even though he admitted afterwards that he is still looking to find his rhythm after missing a lot of pre-season with a hand injury.

"The team helped me a lot," he said. "I still do not feel 100 per cent, but I am happy because I have played for 90 minutes and bit-by-bit I am finding my level again."

Xavi

"We came off the back of winning two Super Cups and it was not easy. It was a game that could have caused us problems, but we gave everything we had."

"It was a game that could have caught us out. Sporting play well, but the team has not complicated matters for ourselves."

"In general we played well and played with humility."

"Ibra is a goalscorer and he likes to score. It is his first goal for Barça and we are happy for him because he is doing well."

Dani Alves

"It was very important to win today because all our rivals in the league had already done so."

"Ibra has just arrived and it is important for him to be calm and to know that the goals will come."

"I am sure that if we do things well then we will only have ourselves to worry about."

Gerard Piqué

"We have maintained the same routine as last year. The only thing we thought about was winning."

"The set pieces we worked on on the day of the game and they worked. All the work that we did last year and this is building up. At times we need to use set pieces."

"It is normal that the team was a bit tired after the Super Cup, but I thought that we did well and we were quickly able to take control."

"The team played to a great level and I do not think tiredness was a factor."

Seydou Keita

"It was difficult playing after Monaco, which was a hard pitch and the game was 120 minutes long."

"We wanted Ibra to score because he needed to. If he can adapt quickly it will be better for the team."

"To play for Barça you need to adapt to the style, but I am delighted with things now."

Alberto Botia (Barça player on loan at Sporting)

"I was lucky to make my debut at Camp Nou even though it was not for Barça.

"We played against the best team in the world and it is very difficult to beat them."