© EuroFootball.com
The strategist of Lisbon Ronald Koeman ignited passions before Tuesday's UEFA Champions League quarter-final clash with Barcelona, saying that the Spanish team trusts themselves too much.
After hearing the words of the Barcelona star Deco telling the media that the Catalan superclub will easily defeat the Portuguese team and possibly secure a spot in the semifinals after the first match, the Dutchman decided to criticize his former employers.
"They trust themselves too much," Koeman said. "They think they've already won and that they will win everything this year, but they forget that there are other very strong teams both in the Champions League and in Spain."
"They will have to fight and play very well, because just talking won't win anything," continued the Dutchman. "If they are much better than us, they will have to prove it on the field, but they should not expect it to be easy."
Unlike Deco, Koeman believes that the recent performances of Barcelona in matches prove that the Catalan superclub is beatable.
"The results of Barcelona's recent matches in the Spanish championship give us confidence that they can be beaten," said the former defender of the Dutch national team. "They failed to beat Osasuna and Malaga. I watched the match against Getafe from the stands and saw episodes where Barca dominated, but there were also episodes where both us and any other team could punish them severely."
