Martino frustrated by Barcelona performances

Posted Sunday, September 29, 2013 by Goal.com

The Argentine coach believes that his side need to become more consistent despite leading them to a straightforward 2-0 victory over Almeria in La Liga on Saturday

Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino had voiced his frustration with his side's lack of control on their matches this season.

The Blaugrana kept up their 100 per cent record in La Liga thanks to a 2-0 win over Almeria, with goals from Lionel Messi and Adriano, but, while the former Newell's Old Boys boss was happy with his side's second-half showing against the Andalusians, he criticised their performance before the break.

"We did not control the game in the first half," he told Sport. "We had many inaccurate passes and lost many balls. The second half was all ours and we solved it well with a goal from Adriano.

"We played well one half and reasonably the other and we have to aim for consistency because the idea is to control it for the 90 minutes.

"We were also lacking movement to keep the ball and give options to the player who has it."

Neymar was left on the bench at Almeria and did not play a single minute, despite Lionel Messi's first-half injury, but Martino has confirmed that he was planning to give the Brazilian a breather.

"He played three or four days ago, has played eight games in a row and is accumulating lots of minutes," he added.

"If he didn't play [on Saturday] and does on Tuesday it will be a difference of just three days and I don't think he doubts his importance to the team, nor will he lose his form."