Keita played the full 92 minutes in the win over Mallorca, taking over from the injured Xavi in midfield. At the end of the game , Keita commented: “this was a very important win and scoring three goals too! As well as the seven tackles and 92 successful passes from the 99 he attempted, he set up Messi’s opener with a clever lob over the defence.

Importance of the squad

Keita wasn’t looking to hog the headlines though and he insisted: “every time I play I try and do my best for the team … we are a team and tonight other players played and did well – we won and that’s what counts”.

Below are some of the other players’ post-match comments:

José Manuel Pinto

“I’m happy about the three points and it’s always good to keep a clean sheet”

“We can’t be as fluent as we want to be every day, but then we pulled ourselves together and it all went right for us”.

“The job of defending is done by all the team, not just the defence”.

“It’s good that we can show that even though we have many players ruled out, we can all show we are 100%”

Martín Montoya

“I am very happy to have made my debut with the first team and to have had this opportunity”.

“I was a bit nervous beforehand, but once you get on the pitch the nerves go and you calm down”.

“It was hard work in the first half, Mallorca were sitting back and leaving very little space, whilst in the second half we were able to use the ball better. Once we had scored the first, the others soon came along”.

David Villa

“I’m especially happy because it was an important win at a difficult ground. I’m pleased with the result and the goal”.

“[Speaking of his run of four games scoring] I’m happy that my luck is holding out”.

“The game against Valencia will be one of the hardest in the league, but it’ll be great for me to go back there after all the great times I had there”.

“[Speaking of his goal] it’s not easy to get a one on one with the keeper and Busquets great pass put me through on Aouate and I was lucky enough to score”.

Gerard Piqué

“It was hard to get going in the first half, but Leo’s goal calmed us down and Villa’s strike finished them off”.

“Whoever plays, we perform at the highest level”.

“We’ll go to Valencia with the same idea of playing with pressure up front, keeping the ball and sticking to our own ideas. We are ready for Wednesday”.

“We prefer having two games a week, so that we are better prepared and we don’t lose our focus”.

Andrés Iniesta

“Mallorca are always dangerous”.

“I’ve captained the team a few times, but it’s always special to wear the armband”.

“We found it hard to enter into the dynamic of the game, but after the goal we relaxed and dominated better”.

“If we want to keep the distance between us and Madrid, we have to win in Valencia”.