A furious Ilkay Gundogan ripped into his FC Barcelona teammates for their lack of concern following a tough defeat to Real Madrid in El Clasico, as shown in a mixed zone interview shared on social media.
The Catalans went a goal up in the tie after Gundogan scored an early opener.
They were then the best side for a good 60 minutes, despite fielding a depleted XI beset by injuries to key stars including Pedri and Frenkie de Jong.
Slowly but surely, however, the visiting Los Blancos took over the tie at the Montjuic Stadium.
A stunning double completed by Jude Bellingham deep into injury time snatched a 2-1 win, which put Carlo Ancelotti’s men top of the La Liga table and four points clear of the Blaugrana.
Starting a post-match interview in the mixed zone, competitive animal Gundogan, who joined Barca from a treble-winning Manchester City outfit in the summer, was clearly angry.
“Of course people are disappointed. But after such a big game, and such a result, I wish there was more anger, frustration and disappointment,” he said.
“There has to be more emotion, especially when you lose.
“You know you can do better in certain situations and you don’t react, and this transfers to the pitch at the end of the day,” he added.
While Barca only tasted defeat for the first time in 2023/2024 on Saturday, cheap points dropped in away draws at Mallorca and Granada mean they are at a disadvantage in the title race.
“We need to make a huge step or Real Madrid or Girona is going to run away,” Gundogan demanded.
“I didn’t come here to lose these types of games or let a gap be created [at the top of the table].”
With Pedri and De Jong possibly returning for the fixture, Barca now have a must-win assignment away at Real Sociedad next weekend where the hosts are high on confidence given strong form in the Champions League.
Barca have less to worry about in the elite European club competition, topping Group H with three wins from three thus far which have earned them over $60 million in total prize money according to UEFA
