|
Luis Enrique wants his Barcelona players to control their emotions when they take on Espanyol in the Catalan derby at Camp Nou on Sunday. Barca have the chance to move to within three points of Real Madrid -- who don't play this weekend due to their participation at the Club World Cup -- but face an Espanyol side who are unbeaten in nine league games. The two clubs have met four times since January in heated affairs, with 34 bookings and two red cards spread across those meetings. However, Quique Sanchez Flores has since taken over at Espanyol and the squad has been overhauled, so while Luis Enrique won't be paying too much attention to those precedents, he did warn his players to stay in line. "They're special games for the players and you need to control your emotions and set an example for the fans," he told a news conference on Saturday. "We've not analysed those recent games as a reference, though, because the players were different and there was a different manager. We've been focused on what they've done in more recent games. "I saw their game [against Atletico Madrid] this morning. It's given me an idea of what we will have to do and what they will try to do against us. "They don't mind the other team having the ball and then they have players like [Felipe] Caicedo and [Gerard] Moreno who can punish you. Most of the game will be in their half, we won't change our style: we want the ball and will look to create danger. "It's important to win; the only way we can put pressure on Madrid is by winning, so we need the points to put pressure on." Barca will be at full strength for the derby, with only defender Jeremy Mathieu currently sidelined with an injury. Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Neymar and Gerard Pique are all available for what is the last La Liga game of the year, with all four, Luis Enrique hinted, likely to then be given time off when the Blaugrana play Hercules in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday in their final game before the Christmas break. Suarez signed a new contract on Friday and Messi is expected to follow suit, but Luis Enrique once again refused to speak about the situation. "Every time a player renews their contract, and several have this season, it's always good news," he responded when asked for his thoughts on Suarez renewing and the possibility of Messi committing his future to the club next. "It strengthens the team and means we can continue to enjoy them at the club, but Messi is the person to ask about the second part of the question." The Barca boss also responded with "no comment" when asked about Josep Maria Bartomeu's suggestion earlier this week that the Catalan club would begin talks in April about extending his contract, which expires in 2017.
|
