For FC Barcelona, Tuesday evening didn't bring the desired outcome at the Parc des Princes.
Against reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain, they suffered a 2-4 defeat on the third matchday of the UEFA Champions League (match report >>>).
It was also the Catalans' first competitive defeat of the season. In the first eleven matches, they had secured eleven victories.
"Not the end of the world"
Captain Raphinha commented after the match: "We knew something like this could happen; we're playing against the two-time Champions League winner, and playing in front of their fans is very difficult. We wanted to win or at least take a point, but it's not the end of the world."
Despite the negative result, coach Hansi Flick also drew some positive conclusions from the match, speaking to "Sky".
"First of all, it was a great game for everyone who loves football. These are two teams that simply play beautiful football. PSG had many chances, we also had ours. I believe in the end we weren't as fresh as we normally are. The preparation wasn't optimal," said the German.
He continued: "Nevertheless, I saw many things that I simply like, that I was happy to see, and that make me look positively at this game. And a few things that we simply need to improve."
"You don't win titles in October"
Regarding potential title races, Flick isn't stressed. "Today we played against PSG in the league phase. You don't win titles in October. But it shows us how far we are and how we can still improve."
With two wins after three matchdays, Barcelona is still in a good position. Five rounds remain in the league phase before heading into the knockout stage.
Particularly bitter from the Spaniards' perspective, however, was the quick 2-3 after the renewed equalizer. "Of course, it's annoying. (...) We also know that they like to finish from precisely this position. We missed that, we didn't do that well. We will talk about it."
"Marc Bernal is a huge talent"
