‘The team never lost its composure’… Eric Garcia happy with his Barcelona team’s performance after their comeback against Benfica | OneFootball

FC Barcelona went into the UEFA Champions League match against Benfica last night with the aspiration of securing a direct qualification to the Round of 16. However, they did not start exactly according to their plans as they fell a goal down in the very first minutes of the game, and by the half-time whistle were trailing the match with a 3-1 deficit.

However, they started a commendable comeback in the second half after getting a rather lucky goal early after the break. Several Blaugrana players then stepped up their game to ensure their team took the full three points, with Raphinha and Lewandowski both scoring crucial goals.

But there was another unlikely hero for the Catalans on the night, Eric Garcia, who has been struggling for prominence in Flick’s team this season, but proved crucial against Benfica as he scored a goal in the 86th minute to equalize the game at 4-4.

As Mundo Deportivo has reported, the Spanish defender also talked to the media after the full-time whistle, and highlighted how difficult this win was:

“Benfica is a very dangerous team, they love to counterattack. They hurt us a lot, but it’s an incredible victory. The team never lost its composure throughout the match, and we are very happy.”

The former Manchester City player also praised the mentality shown by his team on the night: “Starting the match by losing in the 2nd minute always messes up your plans, it frustrates you… [however] the mentality the team showed throughout the match was incredible.”

Garcia also opened up on his situation at Barcelona and admitted that he wants to have more minutes on the pitch: “All the players want to feel important… the one who makes the decisions is the coach, and my job is to make the most of the minutes I get to try to change his mind.”

With this performance, Garcia has made a very strong case for getting more minutes in the upcoming matches. Meanwhile, this performance will also have been noted by the likes of Girona and Como, two sides that are looking to incorporate him into their teams in this January transfer window.