'We have to change' - Xavi slams Barcelona players after disappointing Rayo Vallecano draw

Barcelona somehow managed to hold Rayo Vallecano to a 1-1 draw on Saturday in La Liga courtesy of Florian Lejeune's own goal in the 82nd minute which cancelled out Unai Lopez's first-half striker. Xavi was unhappy with the result and questioned the mentality of his players as he felt that the team is lacking a killer instinct.

At the post-match press conference, Xavi said: "I think it was a game of two halves. In the first, we dominated but didn't really go for the game, we were not aggressive. We lacked that mentality to go for it. If we want to win trophies this season, we have to change our mentality. The second half was good but not enough. We woke up too late. We did what we wanted: dominated and created chances. We could have scored more. But we have to win these games if we want to win LaLiga, so we have to be self-critical, too, and improve. We have to be closer to the second half performance.

"It's normal that there is criticism, but I know we can turn this around, there is plenty of time. After winning La Liga and the [Spanish] Super Cup [last season], maybe our mentality has subconsciously dropped a bit. You cannot allow that, neither from me as a coach nor the players. We have to give more."

The Catalan giants are currently three points behind leaders Girona who have a game in hand and are fourth in the league table after 14 matches. They have managed to win just two matches out of their last five outing across all competitions with losses coming against arch-rivals Real Madrid in the league and against Shakhtar Donetsk in Europe.

The Catalan side will now aim to bounce back in the Champions League as they next take on FC Porto in a crucial fixture on Tuesday at home.