As he prepares to confront the last opposition to beat his team, Barcelona boss Luis Enrique is urging his
Barca are undefeated since a 2-1 loss against Sevilla, visitors to the Nou Camp, in the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in October.
That long unbeaten run has allowed the Catalan giants to establish a healthy advantage in La Liga, as well as progressing to the Copa del Rey final and effectively booking their place in the Champions
League quarter-finals with Tuesday’s 2-0 win at Arsenal.
Atletico’s victory over Real in the Madrid derby means that Barca can tonight climb 12 points ahead of their eternal rivals while maintaining an eight-point gap over second-placed Atletico, but Enrique has ordered his players not to relax.
“It would be a serious error to think the league title is already won,” Enrique said.
“We will keep competing until there is a champion.”
[FCB QUIZ] Sevilla’s last 10 visits to Camp Nou in La Liga https://t.co/3APwee7C4j pic.twitter.com/Fs1kpI4uOT
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) February 28, 2016
Another motivation for Barca is reaching 34 games unbeaten in all competitions, which would level the all-time record for a Spanish team previously achieved by Real Madrid in 1988/89.
But Enrique is unconcerned by that potential milestone, insisting that only a result interests
him. “We have to remember that these are three vital points for winning the title,” he said. “That’s the
mentality we need in every game because our lead isn’t big enough yet. That kind of thinking has won us trophies and as a professional I know it’s very difficult to think of yourself as champions until it’s mathematically confirmed.”
Visitors Sevilla have a miserable record on their travels despite rising to fifth place in La Liga, failing to win a single league game away from home all season.
[VIDEO + PHOTOS] Saturday training session https://t.co/uglT7YMKuu pic.twitter.com/IgMBJedMjV
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) February 28, 2016
But another edge to the game comes with the fact that it is a dress rehearsal for May’s Copa del Rey final, which Sevilla reached after comfortably knocking out Celta Vigo in the semi-final earlier this month. And despite the Andalusian team’s woeful record on the road, Enrique made it clear that he regards them as one of the strongest teams in Spain as he noted: “We are playing one of the leading clubs.
“They will make big demands of us and they have improved a lot since the first half of the season. We know them well and know how much work has gone into building a strong team.”
Enrique received a boost with young midfielder Rafinha returning to training for the first time since being sidelined with a serious knee injury in September.
The Barca boss admitted he would be delighted if the youth team graduate is able to feature soon, saying: “He’s fine and meeting the deadlines that he was set.
“It would be great if he could help us at the end of the season, but it’s the doctors who will decide whether he’s fit to play or not.”
