Barcelona lacked intensity & freshness, says Roura

Feb 3, 2013 10:15:00 PM

The Blaugrana assistant coach believes their Copa del Rey clash with Real Madrid in midweek impacted on their 1-1 result with Valencia, but says the draw was a fair scoreline

Barcelona assistant coach Jordi Roura has bemoaned the side’s lack of intensity in their 1-1 result with Valencia on Sunday night, but thinks a draw was the fair result.

Ever Banega put the hosts ahead at the Mestalla before Lionel Messi scored in his 12th Liga game in a row, this time from the penalty spot, to make it 1-1, and Roura believes the Blaugrana lacked freshness after their Copa del Rey semi-final with Real Madrid in midweek.

He told reporters after the match: "There is no doubt that we come into this after a very tough match in Madrid.

“Our showing in the first half cost us, and Valencia had a great intensity in the second, playing higher up the pitch, from a physical standpoint.

“As always, we came with the intention of winning, but what happened was we found it difficult at the Mestalla and, in the end, a draw is fair enough.

"We lacked intensity in the first half. We lacked depth in the second half; we had three or four very clear chances. Overall, we did not have the freshness of other games, but it's understandable. "

Tito Vilanova’s assistant also heralded goalkeeper Victor Valdes for his display on the night, with the Camp Nou shot-stopper having received a lot of criticism since making his decision not to sign a new contract.

Roura said: "We are delighted with Victor, we have always said he is the best goalkeeper we can have.

“Today he played at a very high level, and we will continue helping and assisting in any way we can while he is still with us."