S
SEARCH
M
SW
Dec 13, 2020 at 8pm UK
BarcelonaBarcelona
1-0
LevanteLevante
Messi (76')
de Jong (49'), Braithwaite (87')
FT(HT: 0-0)

Vukcevic (42')
/esi/1339/6_G_1_123661/index.html?art_id=426416&game_id=123661&sport_id=1&ESI

Ronald Koeman: 'We are still in La Liga title race'

:Headline: Ronald Koeman: 'We are still in La Liga title race': ID:426416: from db_amp
Lionel Messi struck 14 minutes from time to secure three points against struggling Levante.

Ronald Koeman insisted Barcelona are still in the La Liga title hunt after a hard-fought 1-0 home win over Levante.

Barcelona had to rely on a late moment of magic from Lionel Messi to see off Levante, who remain in the relegation zone after a 16th straight defeat at the Nou Camp.

The win moves Barcelona up to eighth and to within nine points of top two Real Sociedad and Atletico Madrid, the latter having lost 2-0 to city rivals Real Madrid on Saturday.

Lionel Messi scores Barcelona's winner against Levante at the Nou Camp (Joan Monfort/AP)

"Of course we can win (the title)," Koeman said at his post-match press conference.

"If we improve and we have more confidence and we improve our effectiveness (in front of goal), there's a chance.

"There are still lots of games left remaining. We know our situation in the league

"We knew after we lost against Cadiz we had to win and let's hope that is good for the confidence."

Messi's winner, a crisp shot off the far post 14 minutes from time, was only his fifth league goal of the season.

"You have to realise they don't make it easy for him," said Koeman, who sent on defender Samuel Umtiti in the closing moments to protect Barcelona's lead.

"He's marked by lots (of players). But he's shown he's decisive.

Barcelona are at home to Real Sociedad on Wednesday and full-back Jordi Alba believes the Catalans are heading in the right direction.

“The level of the league is good and we are on the right road to move up the table”
- Barcelona defender Jordi Alba

Alba told Movistar LaLiga: "The level of the league is good and we are on the right road to move up the table.

"Regardless of what happened in the Madrid derby, we have to do things the right way.

"If we do we'll be up there. We've dropped too many points, that is clear.

"But the league is very open. This year there are teams who have never been as high in the table and they are up there at the moment."

Levante goalkeeper Aitor Fernandez makes one of several fine saves against Barcelona (Joan Monfort/AP)

Levante beat Getafe 3-0 last weekend, but that was only their second win of the campaign and the Valencia-based side remain two points from safety.

Goalkeeper Aitor Fernandez said: "We should take pride from the fact they ended the game with three centre-backs.

"That speaks well of the way we played and the game that we played. We made one mistake and they scored, but we must keep showing the same attitude.

"We wanted to move away from the bottom and it was a shame we could not do that."

amp_article_426416 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2020-12-13 23:51:18:
html db last update - 2021-02-14 03:37:08 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Ronald Koeman

Click here for more stories about Barcelona

Read more!
Share this article now:
La Liga Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Atletico MadridAtletico21173144133154
2Barcelona22144449212846
3Real Madrid22144439192046
4Sevilla22143532161645
5Villarreal2281223122936
6Real Sociedad2298536201635
7Real Betis2293102937-830
8Granada238692738-1130
9Celta Vigo237882934-529
10Levante216963131027
11Athletic Bilbao2174102826225
12Getafe2266101728-1124
13Valencia225982830-224
14CadizCadiz2266102035-1524
15Osasuna2257102131-1022
16AlavesAlaves2357112034-1422
17EibarEibar2349101926-721
18Real Valladolid2349102234-1221
19ElcheElche213991931-1218
20Huesca23210111833-1516
Scroll for more - Tap for full version

Subscribe to our Newsletter


Transfer Talk Daily
Match previews - twice weekly
Morning Briefing (7am UTC)
UC
Get the latest transfer news, match previews and news direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

La Liga Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Atletico MadridAtletico21173144133154
2Barcelona22144449212846
3Real Madrid22144439192046
4Sevilla22143532161645
5Villarreal2281223122936
6Real Sociedad2298536201635
7Real Betis2293102937-830
8Granada238692738-1130
9Celta Vigo237882934-529
10Levante216963131027
11Athletic Bilbao2174102826225
12Getafe2266101728-1124
13Valencia225982830-224
14CadizCadiz2266102035-1524
15Osasuna2257102131-1022
16AlavesAlaves2357112034-1422
17EibarEibar2349101926-721
18Real Valladolid2349102234-1221
19ElcheElche213991931-1218
20Huesca23210111833-1516
Scroll for more - Tap for full version
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
X

We value your privacy

A part of our GDPR compliance we need to ask for your consent. We and our partners use technology such as cookies on Sports Mole to personalise content and ads, provide social media features, and analyse our traffic. Click below to consent to the use of this technology on Sports Mole.