Barcelona will play its first match in the European League on Thursday, after being eliminated from the Champions League earlier.
The Russian club Zenit chose to welcome the Catalan club in its own way, and published, through its official accounts on the communication sites, a video clip sarcastically reminding Barcelona that it is about to participate in the European League instead of the Champions League.
đ @FCBarcelona #UEL pic.twitter.com/kySwaAkYWX
â FC Zenit Españolâš (@es_fczenit) February 16, 2022
Barcelona was unable to retain its place in the Champions League playoffs, which it has stuck to during the past 17 seasons in the continental competition, after it ranked third in Group E behind Bayern Munich and Benfica, to move to play in the European League.
Coach Xavi Hernandez lamented watching Champions League matches without Barcelona. "This is another motivation to win a title that we don't have. I feel very angry listening to Champions League music and not being there," he said.
Barcelona collides with Napoli in order to win the nomination paper for the price of the European League final, in the first experience of the Spanish team with the current system of the European competition, which follows the Champions League in terms of importance.
Xavi realizes that Barcelona faces a major challenge in its quest to qualify for the next round at the expense of the team managed by Luciano Spalletti.
"Napoli is a really very good team led by a coach with a lot of experience. They work well in moving the ball and pressing high on the field," the Barcelona coach emphasized.
"They will make it difficult for us, they want to have possession of the ball, they defend well, they are narrow spaces, and they have high-quality players."