Pedri criticizes harsh defeat of Barça against Sevilla: “First half was awful”

Pedri Criticizes Barcelona’s Performance After Defeat to Sevilla

Midfielder Pedri did not hesitate to call Barcelona’s first half in their recent match “terrible.” The team suffered their first defeat of the season in LaLiga, falling 4-1 to Sevilla at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán stadium. The match began with a penalty goal from veteran Alexis Sánchez, followed by a goal from Isaac Romero, putting Sevilla in the lead. Although Marcus Rashford managed to score before halftime, Barcelona couldn’t keep up the pace. In the second half, Robert Lewandowski missed a crucial penalty, and late goals from José Ángel Carmona and Akor Adams sealed Barcelona’s defeat. This loss marks the first time since December 2024 that the team has suffered two consecutive defeats, following their midweek setback against Paris Saint-Germain.

“The first half was terrible. I don’t think we’ve played as badly as we did today. We have to be honest with ourselves and be self-critical,” Pedri stated to Barça One after the match.

Pedri

Pedri also pointed out the lack of intensity and quality in the team’s play during the first half, highlighting Barcelona’s inability to overcome Sevilla’s pressure. The player emphasized the need to improve several aspects and assured that both coach Hansi Flick and the players will work hard to prevent this situation from happening again.

Sevilla defeated Barcelona in LaLiga for the first time in a decade.The defeat relegates Barcelona to second place in the LaLiga table, behind Real Madrid, who defeated Villarreal on Saturday. Despite the defeat, Flick praised the team’s reaction in the second half. In addition to the penalty missed by Lewandowski, Roony Bardghji missed two good opportunities, while Eric García saw his header saved.

“The first part was not good for us. They played one-on-one against us and were very aggressive, so we had no solution to play. It was not good, but in the second part the reaction was good. I really appreciate what we did, how we played and it was really good to see”, commented the Barça coach.

Hansi Flick

The international break offers the team the opportunity to recover injured players. Flick expects a reaction when the team returns to action in LaLiga against Girona on October 18. The coach emphasized the importance of reaction and emotion in the locker room, promising to fight for all the titles.

“The most important thing is the reaction and the emotion, also in the locker room, which I see. It is important that we maintain that and that when we start again after the break we will fight. We will fight for every title. It will be for the Champions League, for the Copa del Rey, for the Super Cup and, of course, for LaLiga. This is what we want. I think we are a good team. The players will return and we will move forward. It is positive and we work hard and this is what we have to do,” he added.

Hansi Flick