“The incident with Neymar’s dad? Some media outlets are pathetic”

Barcelona travel to Ciutat de Valencia tomorrow to take on rock bottom-placed Levante in what will be Luis Enrique’s one hundredth competitive fixture in charge of the Catalan side. The Barca boss spoke on the eve of the match to discuss Sunday’s game plan and Neymar’s late-night antics among other things.

What are your thoughts on Levante?

This will be a tricky tie because they need to pick up points, not to mention the fact that they’ve strengthened. This is the stage of the season when results are crucial. This will be a challenge in terms of us remaining in the driving seat at the top of the league.

Following the resounding win in the Cup does facing the bottom-placed side require more attention than usual?

These two games bear no similarities. It won’t be easy to win. They’re at home, are in desperate need of points and have new players to help them achieve that. They know how important it is to get results.

Does playing at midday instead of 4pm suit the team better because it’s the same time you train?

There are a lot of theories on this matter. Twelve is the time we’re scheduled to play and all the teams have to play at that hour at some stage. Both teams are in the same situation.

Will you use this game to make changes?

There won’t be rotations. The plan changes enormously depending on if it’s a home or away fixture. The Camp Nou gives us an edge and we always try to play the same both home and away.

Have the institutional problems off the pitch affected the squad or are the players accustomed to such things?

The team are focused on achieving our goals. We’re immune to all the outside distractions.

Is Neymar permitted to be out at 1:20am two days before a match?

I’m not going to talk about that in public. Sometimes people step over the line. There are a lot of media outlets that act in a pathetic manner. I can put my hand on my heart and say the players are fit to play.

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Have Levante’s new players affected your approach to this game?

My plans haven’t deviated but they have strengthened well. I was surprised they signed Rossi. They’ll be looking to play good football and will press us on the ball. That won’t change our plans though because they’re always the same. Saying that, it will be difficult.

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Tomorrow is your 100th game in charge and you hold the best record off any Barcelona manager.Are you proud of what you’ve done?

I’m proud of everything, the good things and the bad. The team have been working hard in the background and our good results have come because we have the best players.

Does the pressure of trying to win the title compare with trying to avoid the drop? How does it affect the game?

Our aim is to win every game while teams in more precarious positions in the table have different objectives. It’s a double-edged sword. Getting points won’t help them win the league title but perhaps other games pose more of a danger to their survival. Nonetheless, the teams at the lower end of the table tend to win more games towards the business end of the season.

Filipe Luis’ sanction was reduced to just one game. Do you think tough tackling is dealt with too harshly in Spain?

I can’t talk about other teams’ bans. But it is true that we often see cards come out for ridiculous things like protesting while hard challenges get away unpunished. We have to put our faith in the referees, it’s their job to assess these things.

Does it bother you that Neymar’s off the field problems are getting more attention than his talent on it?

If people don’t rate his footballing ability they must be blind. He is a spectacular talent.

Are you aware that Roures’ emails were monitored during your time at the helm of Barca B?

No. I didn’t have a computer when I was with the reserves so I’m not worried about anything”