Xavi: Barça need a 'reset' after shock UCL loss

Xavi Hernández says Barcelona are in a rut and need a reset after suffering a surprise 1-0 defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League in Hamburg on Tuesday.

Danylo Sikan scored the only goal of the game just before half-time as Barça missed the chance to book their place in the knockout stages of the competition.

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The Spanish champions dominated possession but only managed one shot on target despite bringing on Pedri, Lamine Yamal and João Félix in the second half.

"We deserved to lose," Barcelona coach said in his post-game news conference. "We have to be honest. We played badly and nothing we had planned came off.

"The level of our performances is really low at the moment. This was one of the worst games of my two years in charge. We have to be self-critical.

"There was a reaction in the second half but it wasn't enough. This competition demands your best and we were not at it today. It is clear a step back.

"We are angry. Confidence has dropped, we are in a bit of a rut and we need a reset.

Barça won 1-0 at Real Sociedad at the weekend in LaLiga, but Xavi labelled the display against the Basque side "unacceptable" and criticised the intensity shown by his players.

Against Shakhtar, who have been displaced to Hamburg for European games due to the war in Ukraine, the Barça coach was more disappointed with the manner of the performance.

"I wouldn't say it was an intensity problem this time," he added. "We didn't understand what the game needed. We lost a lot of balls, we didn't attack well, we didn't deal with crosses well and we paid for our mistakes."

Barça remain on top of Group G with nine points from four games, level with FC Porto, while Shakhtar have six points and Royal Antwerp remain pointless.

"It's a shame because we wanted to book our place in the last 16," Xavi said. "We still have qualification in our own hands, though, and that's the big positive.

"We have the next game at home, against Porto, and we can seal it there. We have to restore the confidence. We're having a small dip right now.

"Not so long ago we were playing very good football -- it's a mental issue."

Barça defender João Cancelo called on the team to show a reaction on Sunday when they host Alaves in LaLiga, where they are currently third, four points behind surprise leaders Girona and two off Real Madrid.

"We have played really badly in the last two games," Cancelo said. "Against Real Sociedad, we didn't deserve to win and today we didn't play well enough to get the points.

"Now we have a game this weekend to come back with a better mentality before the international break."