adminMADRID. – Real Sociedad coach David Moyes praised his side’s determined defending after their 1-0 victory over Barcelona on Sunday.
Moyes has had little to cheer about over the last year but was all smiles after his side held on to beat Barca after taking the lead in the second minute through an own-goal by Jordi Alba.
The Scotsman lasted less than a season at the helm of Manchester United before being sacked last April and took on a tough task when he agreed to take over a Sociedad side fighting relegation in November.
There were plenty of doubts in the local media over his lack of experience of Spanish football, and his in- ability to speak the language, but he has made a solid start, building from the back and they have lost only one game so far.
“I am very happy to get the result, it was very important and it was a very hard game,” Moyes told a news conference.
“We worked hard defensively and defending is a big part of football. You don’t win games if you don’t defend well. The way that we played at the back gave us the chance to win this game.
“I always hope that we have the ball in all our matches but against Barcelona you know that this is difficult. This is something that we can improve on but I would like to emphasise the spirit of the team and the way we worked hard together.”
Sociedad’s task was arguably made easier with both Lionel Messi and Neymar left on the bench in the first half having only returned last Friday from their Christmas break and Moyes said he was not surprised by Barca coach Luis Enrique’s team selection.
“I wouldn’t say that it was more straightforward as Barcelona have a strong squad with great players,” he said. “They have top players though and they can’t always be at their best in all games.
“The most important games for Barcelona will come later in the season and I think Luis Enrique made a sensible decision. I thought something like this would happen and we were prepared for it.”
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid’s prodigal son Fernando Torres could make his return in a heated derby with Real Madrid tomorrow in the last 16 of the King’s Cup if he looks sharp in training, coach Diego Simeone has said.
The former Atletico captain, who played 244 games for his home-town club where he debuted aged 17, has signed an 18-month loan deal from AC Milan which will become effective when the Italian transfer market opens on Monday.
“He will train with us, play a bit of football and we will see how he is,” Simeone told a news conference.
Torres, nicknamed El Nino (The Kid), was an Atletico emblem who left the stuttering club in 2007 to seek his fortune at Liverpool and Chelsea and has now returned to a side that broke the monopoly of Real and Barcelona by winning La Liga last season.
The success under Simeone has brought a new perspective to the Madrid derby which Real had become used to winning at a canter.
Last season Atletico suffered an excruciating extra-time defeat in the Champions League final against Real but beat their city rivals in the Spanish Super Cup, this season’s curtain raiser.
Atletico have reacted well to the loss of key personnel ahead of this season and lie third in La Liga but face a stern test of their mettle this week.
First they have the first-leg visit of Real, whose Spanish record 22-match winning streak was ended in a La Liga defeat at Valencia on Sunday, followed by a trip to Barcelona in the league next weekend.
“We are calm having got the victory and now we will prepare for the cup game which is very important for us,” Simeone said after Saturday’s 3-1 victory over Levante in La Liga.
“Then we will start thinking about Barcelona but with the same mentality as ever.”
Real also have a testing run of games which started with the Valencia reverse but coach Carlo Ancelotti has said he will give equal importance to the league and cup.
“We don’t have a priority. We will concentrate on the next game and we will put out the best team possible,” Ancelotti told a news conference, while acknowledging there might still be rotation.
“It will be necessary to rest players so as to avoid injuries and have the squad more motivated.”
Elsewhere, Barcelona have a seemingly easier passage into the next round of the cup against La Liga bottom side Elche, with the first leg on Thursday.-Soccernet
Online Reporter