Guardiola: We were the better team

Posted Thursday, November 24, 2011 by ESPN

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola believes his side were deserving winners in their 3-2 victory over AC Milan in the Champions League.

Wednesday's result means Barca are now assured of first place in Group H, while Milan, who had already qualified for the next round before the match, will have to settle for second place.

And despite the game at the San Siro being an evenly-contested match, with Barca only claiming the win through Xavi's 63rd-minute strike, Guardiola fully believes his charges were deserving of the win.

"We were the better team on the night," Guardiola said on UEFA.com. "It was an important win.

"We played a great game. We took risks while attacking. We had a lot of play and many chances but this is the San Siro and when you come to play at a stadium like this, you start thinking beforehand about taking out an attacker and defending a bit more."

Alarmed by the way in which Milan had broken up their play in the earlier encounter at the Nou Camp, which ended in a 2-2 draw, Guardiola made some changes to his tactics, including
employing playmaker Thiago Alcantara in a more defensive role, which the youngster carried out to perfection.

"I felt before the game they [Milan] would play against us in the same way as they did in the first game when they closed us out from the inside.

"That is why we started with [Lionel] Messi on the right but they took advantage of their full-backs when attacking us. For that reason, we had to ask Thiago [Alcantara] to play more defensively and he fought and worked hard.

"He [Thiago] is a player with great self-esteem and he feels strong. His audacious attitude helps him to feel confident in whatever position he plays."

Nonetheless, Guardiola is also glad to have sewn up top spot with one game in hand, and admits he will look to rest players in their final group match against BATE Borisov, especially with one eye on the league tie with Real Madrid on December 10.

"We competed well. We wanted to finish top of the group so that we have the opportunity to rest [ahead of the game against Real].

Barcelona's next game will see them visit Getafe on Saturday.