SPAIN: BARCA deserves to lose - Iniesta

Apr 10, 2014 2:16:00 PM
The midfielder accepted his side only
had only themselves to blame for
crashing out of the Champions League
after failing to take their chances
Andres Iniesta has admitted Barcelona
deserved to lose their Champions League
quarter-final with Atletico Madrid .
The Catalans suffered a 1-0 defeat at Vicente
Calderon on Wednesday, with Koke's fifth-
minute volley ensuring a 2-1 aggregate win
for Atleti, while denying Barca a seventh-
straight semi-final in the competition.
The visitors had opportunities to level
matters, with the likes of Lionel Messi,
Neymar and Xavi all seeing chances go
begging, but Iniesta conceded Atleti exerted
more pressure in the opening stages and
were rewarded for their efforts.
Iniesta has now set his sights on
overhauling Atleti at the top of La Liga, while
also pointing to Wednesday's Copa del Rey
final with rivals Real Madrid as an ideal
opportunity to bounce back.
"Atletico deserved to go through because
they took advantage of their chances," the
29-year-old told Barcelona's official
website.
"Like in the first 20 minutes, they pressured
us and they took advantage. We tried to
score until the end of the game.
"The Champions League is a very good
competition and it's a shame that we didn't
make the semi-finals.
"There aren't many league games left to win
the title and we have a final in Granada this
weekend and then on Wednesday in the cup."
Full-back Jordi Alba echoed Iniesta's
comments, lamenting Barcelona's failure to
break down a stubborn Atletico rearguard.
He added: "They were the better team in the
opening minutes and after that we took
control of the match, but we didn't know how
to get into their area.
"It's very difficult to beat a rival that play in
this way. After 20 minutes, the intensity was
the same for both teams.
"Now we have to win the Liga and the Copa
del Rey. We have to forget about this game
and start over. We don't like to lose these
games, especially in a competition like this
one."