Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta says he and his
team-mates are "convinced" they will beat Real Madrid in Wednesday's
Copa del Rey final.
The Catalan giants head into the clash against their
arch-rivals on the back of successive defeats.
A 1-0 loss at Atletico Madrid knocked them out of the UEFA
Champions League quarter-finals and they lost by the same scoreline at Granada
on Saturday.
That result leaves Barca four points behind La Liga
leaders Atletico Madrid with just five matches to play, making their chances of
defending their crown unlikely.
One trophy they can win is the Copa del Rey, though, and
despite their recent hiccups, Iniesta says his side will take encouragement
from their 4-3 league win at the Bernabeu last month.
"We are convinced that we can (win). That's the way
it should be," Iniesta said on Tuesday.
"This is the Copa del Rey final and obviously we
have to play the best we can against a very powerful opponent.
"The team has every ability to play well and win tomorrow.
And we are going to go out and do it.
"The team and the players, we've done things very,
very well this season at times against great teams.
"This is the chance to win a title and bring our
fans happiness. There's nothing we should be thinking about apart from winning
this title."
Iniesta acknowledged recent results were disappointing
but said now was not the time to reflect on their failings.
"In the Champions League we have been knocked out
and in the league we took a step in the wrong direction on the weekend,"
he added.
"It's not the time to analyse the season (though).
"We can do that at the end of the season and decide
if it has been a good season or a bad season.
"The important thing here is Barca are always
competing for titles at this time of the year.
"Tomorrow it's up for us to play in a cup final and
go back to the league and keep fighting until the end."
Culled from Soccerway
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