With Martino we’ve found our lost pressure, says Dani Alves

Barca’s players have acknowledged that the great change that has been introduced back into the team by Gerardo Martino is pressure. It was a concept that had been ingrained in the team and one of the keys to Pep Guardiola’s fabulous success. But lately, the players admit that it has become a forgotten concept.

“We lost sight of a few things and it’s important to recover what has been lost Pressure was what made us different from other teams. When we lost that, we became the same as anyone else and lost a few titles along the way. Now the coach has us all psyched and hopefully it will be something constant from now onward” said Dani Alves.

Brazilian Alves, who scored in Sunday’s thrashing of Levante, was very satisfied with the team’s result, but mostly for the good image portrayed by the team on its League debut. Alves said they have a good rapport with Martino: “He’s a coach with a personality that is always looking out for the the team. We’ll try to do our best and take on board the ideas he is proposing”.

Sergio Busquets

Sergio Busquets also acknowledged that the team’s attitude is now different when they lose the ball: “It was a very good start to the season and a very good game overall. Gerardo Martino places lots of emphasis on the issue of pressure. It’s the key. We all hope to continue doing it because it’s important.”

The midfielder also admitted that the team lost this facet of the team last season: “It was a tough year in which we had no stability, but the coach is now highlighting this much more. He wants us to be on top of this. It was very noticeable and we played with intensity and rhythm.”