Every word Alejandro Balde said in his Slavia Prague vs Barcelona pre-match press conference | OneFootball

FC Barcelona are set to face Slavia Prague away from home in a bid to secure three points and keep alive their hopes of a top-eight finish. It will be tricky for the Catalan club, but not impossible if other results go their way.

Ahead of the game, as is traditional with Champions League fixtures, a player appears in front of the media alongside the manager, and this time it was Alejandro Balde’s turn to accompany Hansi Flick and field questions.

According to SPORT, Alejandro Balde spoke on multiple topics yesterday. He was first asked what the team thinks their chances of finishing in the top eight are. He said:

“We see ourselves with chances. We’re doing a great job. We are Barça, and we always have to win. We have a lot of confidence in the team. If we play like we did against Real Sociedad, we’ll surely win. These are matches where the ball just doesn’t want to go in — these things happen.”

Alejandro Balde then spoke about the low temperatures. He continued:

“I really don’t like the cold at all. It’s not an excuse — we have to stay focused on the match. If we maintain our level, we’ll take the three points.”

The Spaniard then confirmed that the club captain, Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, was leaving, which was also revealed later in a statement from the club. He said:

“He spoke to the whole team this morning. He’s a reference figure — I’ve grown up watching him, he’s my captain. I wish him a lot of luck; it will be good for him to regain confidence.”

Balde was then asked about the Spanish national team, for which he has not been called up for a long time. He said:

“All players play to reach the national team — it’s everyone’s dream. I haven’t been called up for two years. Every day I work and make an effort to get the chance to return. What depends on me is to keep working — hopefully I get the opportunity.”

The young defender then spoke about what the team missed at the Anoeta. He said:

“Today we’ll analyse the match — with this schedule, there isn’t much time. One out of a thousand times, you lose. We played an incredible match, one of the best of the season. Sometimes luck is with you, sometimes it isn’t.”

More than a month ago, the Catalan club lost 3-0 to Chelsea and, since then, they had not lost a single game until the recent Real Sociedad encounter. Balde was asked what changed, and here is what he said:

“We didn’t have confidence, and losing 3–0 in the Champions League is tough. We always talk in the dressing room and we knew we could do things better. We’re at a good confidence level now.”

The La Masia graduate then spoke about the scope for improvement in terms of the number of goals conceded:

“There are always things to improve. Maybe we’ve conceded many goals, but we’ve scored more. That’s our style of play — we take risks. The important thing is to win. We’ve won the Super Cup, we’re top of the league, and in the Champions League we’re right there.”

Alejandro Balde was then asked about the left flank and how he feels with Raphinha and Rashford. He said:

“In recent years, the flank has mostly been mine. We are professionals and adapt to the team’s circumstances. I don’t really mind — I feel comfortable with Rashford or Raphinha.”

The Spaniard also assured that he was not insecure about Cancelo’s arrival, welcoming the competition:

“Cancelo has a lot of quality and experience. He will help the young players a lot. As for competition, I think it’s good — the more competition, the higher the level we can reach.”

Balde on Champions League objective:

“We approach it with great enthusiasm. It’s a competition we all dream of playing in and winning. Our idea is not to reach where we did last year — it’s to win it.”

Speaking on Dro Fernandez’s expected departure to PSG, he said:

“Every player has their own career and thinks differently. We have to respect those decisions. I wish him all the best, and I’m sure he’ll do very well. I got along very well with him — he’s a great kid. I hope everyone respects his decision.”

Balde o goal difference:

“We haven’t talked about it. Only two days have passed since the last match. We want to win well, and the more goals, the better.”

Balde then refused to be drawn into the refereeing debate from the Real Sociedad game. He brushed it aside:

“They are decisions we can’t do anything about, very tight game situations. They are external things. We have to respect their decisions and not use them as an excuse.”

Finally, the Spaniard was asked about Lamine’s absence and what it means, and here is what he said:

“Lamine is a player of great quality, one of the best players in the world. It’s always good to have him, but we can’t depend on any single player. Whoever plays in his position will do it perfectly. Whenever he scores, we do some kind of dance or celebration.”

It was a fairly elaborate press conference, but the player did his best to answer every question with sincerity. Despite his age, Alejandro Balde is already one of the more senior figures due to his years with the first team.

He knows he needs to contribute more, particularly in terms of end product, and let us hope he has a good game against Slavia Praha.