Xavi: We were really bad in the first half, Umm Salal deserve the point

Al-Sadd head coach Xavi Hernandez expressed his disappointment after his side’s 2-2 draw with Umm Salal in Round 15 of the QNB Stars League.

Speaking during the press conference after the match, Xavi said: “I feel very disappointed after the draw. Today I did not see my team at all in the first half and in the second half we tried and created several opportunities but we could not win.”

“We were really bad in the first half. We have to review ourselves and be honest, and correct all these mistakes. We played well in the recent matches of the league and the Champions League, but today, especially in the first half, we did not offer anything. In the second half, our desire was strong, in contrast to the first half; we created more opportunities and had a desire to score.”

He added: “I was afraid of this match and spoke with the players about that. Also the timing of the game was bad, we missed many fans who were not present to support the team.”

As for the absence of a number of key players and its impact on the result, Xavi said: “The absence of these players cannot be an excuse for what happened today. There was no focus in the first half and we conceded two goals that we shouldn’t.

He also said: “Umm Salal deserves the point after fighting throughout the match. We did not fight as was required of us in the first half. It was difficult to return after conceding two goals.”

Xavi concluded by saying: “What happened today is a step backwards, and if Al-Duhail wins, the difference will be 5 points. We had wanted to go top of the table temporarily.”