Guardiola unmoved by Barca´s draw

Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola was not too concerned with his side’s failure to win at Sporting Gijon on Saturday.

The reigning La Liga champions were stunned after 16 minutes when David Barral gave the hosts a 1-0 lead but managed a late equaliser, with David Villa finding the net 10 minutes from time to ensure both sides would share the spoils.

The draw will give Real Madrid a chance to cut the gap at the top of the league to five points with a win at Espanyol on Sunday, but Guardiola refused to point the finger at his squad.

“We did not win but we tried everything to achieve it,” Guardiola said.

“We can lose or draw if we do it like this. Pressing, pressing and pressing. It’s not easy attacking when you are faced with 10 players behind the ball.”

Guardiola did not agree with the suggestion that mid-week international friendlies had played havoc with his side in the build-up to the match and said part of playing for Barcelona was knowing how to cope with a hectic schedule.

“It’s not the fault of the national teams. At Barca you have to know how to compete every three days and these players have shown they can do it millions of times.”

Guardiola also said the tactics used by Sporting Gijon manager Manuel Preciado frustrated his side in the 1-1 draw.