Deco added that the presence of so many homegrown players in the squad is the result “of years of work at the club, they are quality players, and it is also the result of the coach, who has great courage. We are Barça and we have to win every game.” The Director of the Football Department at Barça, Marc Guiu, said that “he is a kid who had already shown his quality. It wasn’t a coincidence that he scored the other day, he has very good things, we want him to be calm.”

And about Shakhtar Donetsk he commented that “it is a difficult and tough match… It is a dangerous team away from home and has quality players. If we are not at 100%, we can have problems.”

Xavi, half an hour before kickoff

Xavi Hernandez, in statements on Movistar Liga de Campeones, has assured that “we have a great opponent in front of us today, although people don’t know them. They don’t lose the ball, they dare, it is a difficult opponent.”

The azulgana coach has also said that “we have a short but very young squad. Things are being done very well with the academy, historically Barça has always relied on it. I am very proud of this, I know very well how well they work at La Masia to produce prepared players. As soon as we can, we will give opportunities to those who have not yet debuted.”

He also commented that “we are not here to rest. This is the Champions League, we want to advance from the group stage and the main objective is to reach the round of 16. We are 100% focused, not even thinking about the Clasico.”

“It is a team that can take advantage of transitions. They have good center-backs with very good ball distribution. It will be difficult for us to recover the ball,” he concluded.