Valverde: "We did everything right regarding Chumi"
Barcelona's coach insisted that the club did not bend the rules by fielding the central defender and added signing a striker "won't be as simple as it seems".
Ernesto Valverde faced the media to look ahead to tomorrow's league visit from Leganés. The Barça also answered questions relating to other current issues at the club - transfers, the Chumi case and the Copa draw...
Losing to Leganés in Week 6: "We played very badly, it was a midweek game and we all thought we were on our way to taking a decent result. But with the space of a minute they put two goals past us. It's something we haver to learn from. Leganés play with five at the back and they're a very organized side. They concede few goals and put a lot of balls into the box because they have players who can get on the end of them. It's vital that we make a good start to the second round of matches and take all three points. For us, it's important to have the feeling that every point matters, to understand what is at stake in every game. We cannot afford to think we have won games before we've even played them".
Transfer rumours
Do you like De Jong as a player?
He's a great player, and possibly with a great future head of him. But I don't usually talk about players who might interest Barça. Names are always mentioned. He's at another club and we'll see what happens later on. We have a lot of respect for the player and for Ajax.
What does Malcom have to do to play more often?
Play a lot of games, score goals and show he has a place in the side - the same as everyone else. I don't ask anything different of Malcom to the others. I only want him to show his qualities and be decisive - and to help us when we don't have the ball.
Before the Levante game did you enquire about Chumi and how the rulebook could be interpreted?
There's been a lot of talk about this. I'll say what I said at the time. We did everything correctly. I know that people will see it their way but we did everything right with Chumi.
Hectic schedule
Barça face Sevilla in the quarter finals, will you be rotating the team with more games coming up?
The fixtures calendar is starting to look tough. Sevilla are a great side and we know that we are in for a difficult month if we are serious abouting continuing our Cup run. We'll have to make changes. Some players will be recovering and others can step in like Vermaelen.
How's Umtiti?
He's still busy with his recovery programme; he's doing well but we haven't set a date for his return. I could say he'll be back in two or three weeks but I cannot be any more precise that that.
How are the club's plans to sign a striker developing?
It's not a cause for concern for me, the club's working on it and we'll see. These things aren't quite as simple as they might seem. We'll see if we can bring someone in or not; if not, we'll continue with the players we have here, who I am very happy with.
