City Captain Says Barcelona Are Not Better

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany has backed up his boss Manuel Pellegrini’s claims that Swedish referee Jonas Erikson contributed to the Blues’ defeat to Barcelona.

Pellegrini blasted Eriksson after City’s 2-0 Champions League last-16 first-leg home defeat to Barca on Tuesday evening, and although Kompany admits that the Catalan giants played well, he feels Eriksson did not allow the game to flow.

A Lionel Messi penalty, which also saw Martin Demichelis sent off, and a late strike from Dani Alves put the Spanish giants firmly in the driving seat.

However, Kompany does not believe City were out-classed and when asked if Barca were the best side they had faced this season, the Belgium defender said: “Not at all.

“Incredibly efficient, though – they have great individual quality.

“There was a lot of soft fouls. In the Premier League they would have not been given.”

“By no means did we think they were superior. When it was 11 v 11, maybe we showed a bit more respect.

“There was a lot of soft fouls. In the Premier League, they would have not been given.

“If the tempo was in this game, it would have been to our advantage.

“If the second leg is the same, and we manage to stay away from some fouls, we have a chance.”

Pellegrini said Eriksson was “on Barcelona’s side from beginning to end” and was trying to make up for a previous mistake against the Catalan side, and also questioned UEFA’s decision to appoint an official from Sweden for the tie.

UEFA is likely to take a dim view of such comments – in 2011, it banned Jose Mourinho for five matches, reduced on appeal to three, for a similar rant when he was at Real Madrid.

City travel to the Nou Camp to face Barca in the second leg on Wednesday, March 1.