No reason to panic – Guardiola tells his boys

Source: AFP
Don’t panic, Barcelona coach tells his beaten footballers

Barcelona coach Josep Guardiola insists that he will not press the panic button despite the Spanish giants suffering back-to-back league defeats.

Less than a month ago, Barcelona were coasting to the La Liga title with a healthy 12-point lead over bitter rivals Real Madrid, thanks to a run of 22 championship games without defeat.

But on Sunday, they twice surrendered the lead to lose 4-3 to Atletico Madrid, a heartbreaking setback coming on the back of a shock defeat against relegation-haunted Espanyol and a 1-1 Champions League draw at Lyon.

“We have had a big advantage and Real Madrid have cut it back by eight points in three weeks. But we will continue forward,” said Guardiola whose team’s lead at the top is now just four points.

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Messi will not leave Barcelona

BARCELONA, Spain – After being linked to a move to Real Madrid, Lionel Messi said he wants to spend his career at Barcelona.

“I’ll never leave (Barcelona). I’ll only go if they don’t want me,” Messi said after scoring two goals to lead Spanish league leader Barcelona over Numancia 4-1 Saturday. “Barcelona is my home.”

Madrid is interested in Messi, according to Spanish media reports, which are linking ex-president Florentino Perez with a high-money bid for the 21-year-old Argentina winger – if he stands in the off-season elections.

Perez brought Luis Figo to Madrid from Barcelona in 2000 in a contentious transfer between the classic rivals.

“It seems there’s a campaign to destabilize Barcelona,” Barcelona president Joan Laporta said.

Source: THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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