It will be hard to sleep after Clasico thrashing, says Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez
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Real Madrid's Karim Benzema scoring their fourth goal against Barcelona to complete his hat-trick on Wednesday.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BARCELONA – Xavi Hernandez admitted it would be hard to sleep after Real Madrid outclassed his Barcelona side in a 4-0 Copa del Rey humbling at the Nou Camp on Wednesday.
Los Blancos reached the final 4-1 on aggregate, knocking out the 31-time record Spanish Cup winners after Vinicius Junior opened the scoring and Karim Benzema bagged a hat-trick in the second half of the second leg.
Xavi had led Barcelona to victory over Real in the last three Clasicos, but Los Blancos stunned their rivals to set up a final against Osasuna on May 6.
Real have lifted the cup on 19 occasions, while Osasuna, who secured passage to their second final after beating Athletic Bilbao 2-1 on aggregate on Tuesday, have never won it.
“We’re hurt today, yes. It will be hard to sleep, more so as the big Barca fan that I am,” Xavi said.
“I told the players (this could happen), we had chances but went in at 1-0. It’s a shame because we competed well in the first half and that was our moment.
“In the second, Madrid were better, sincerely. They were better physically, they pressed us high. There are no excuses.
“If you let Madrid off the hook, they don’t forgive you. It’s not by chance they have won the Champions League – they have a great team.”
Barcelona’s Sergi Roberto said letting in Vinicius’ goal on the stroke of half time was a huge blow.
“Their goal at the end of the first half killed us, we didn’t deserve to let in that goal,” the midfielder told RTVE.
“I think we were better in the first half. We created more chances that we didn’t put away, and that goal hurt our morale.
“In the second half, they scored the second and we couldn’t play our game.”
Thousands of Barcelona fans chanted Lionel Messi’s name in the 10th minute, amid speculation he could leave Paris Saint-Germain,
“It was a complete game – when you play a complete game, you win 4-0 like that,” said Real coach Carlo Ancelotti. “This is the most important moment of the season and when we’re at the right temperature.”
Barcelona coach Xavi (in black) is shown a yellow card by referee Jose Luis Munuera during the match.
PHOTO: REUTERS
The painful defeat should not affect Barcelona in their quest to regain the La Liga title. They still hold a 12-point advantage over second-placed Real.
The Catalan side also beat their rivals in the Spanish Super Cup final in January.
“If we win La Liga and the Super Cup, it’s a good season,” added Xavi. “There are 11 finals left, and we have to keep competing.”
Roberto added: “Now we have a considerable points distance, it will not affect us, we have to continue and go for the league.” AFP