Barcelona coach Kiki Sittin admitted that he is struggling to get his ideas across to the players after a clean duo defeat at Valencia in the Spanish Football League, his first defeat since his appointment to succeed Ernesto Valverde less than two weeks ago.
Barcelona were fortunate not to be late with a goal early after goalkeeper Mark Ter Stegen saved a penalty from Maxi Gomez, but Valencia advanced with a goal after the break after Jordi Alba accidentally put the ball in his net when he tried to clear the Uruguayan player Gomez who added the second goal later .
"The team has not yet translated what I am saying, and perhaps I will not explain things well ... Nobody will like our level today," Sittin told a news conference after Barcelona won the ball by 73%.
"Valencia played with commitment and did not leave us spaces, and we have to correct a lot of things."
As in the one-goal victory over Granada in the first match under the leadership of Citin, and the 2-1 victory over Ibiza in the King's Cup, Barcelona dominated the ball for long periods but struggled to create opportunities.
"We went through a lot of balls just to pass, and we weren't able to progress enough ... It didn't go well," said Sittin, 61, who is notorious for his passion for possession of the ball but never won a major title during his career.
He added, "We did not play well in the first half, and the only positive thing is that we ended the half with a zero result. We tried more in the second half, but the half was not good enough."
Barcelona still top the league, but they are only one goal ahead of rivals Real Madrid, who can snatch the summit when he plays in the hospitality of Valladolid on Sunday.