Ronald Koeman On Barcelona Players Being Unhappy With His System: 'It's A Lie'

Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman insists he has a good relationship with his players and they are still trying to improve.

Things haven’t been going well for Barcelona this season, and the club has now suffered two consecutive losses. The Catalans are believed to be starting to lose team spirit, with Koeman’s system not helping at all, according to Mundo Deportivo.

Addressing the club’s issues, the Barca manager said that reports claiming his players are “uncomfortable” with his strategies and decisions are all false.

"That is not true, it's a lie," Koeman said in a news conference ahead of Sunday's game against Levante at Camp Nou. "The players would have said (it). We speak."

"I feel supported by the players,” he continued. “If I didn't have their confidence, I wouldn't be able to do my job. So I feel comfortable, although worried about the situation in the league, as any coach would be. We must improve things.”

Despite the issues surrounding his career at the moment, Messi is still an influential figure in Barcelona. For Koeman, it is necessary for the club to rely on “experienced players” and he is optimistic that these players will soon make a difference.

"This team has enough personality and experience," Koeman added. "It's a moment for the experienced players who've been here for so many years to step up. The good players always stand up.”

Prior to the UEFA Champions League tiebreaker against Barcelona, Juventus manager Andrea Pirlo made a bold claim about Messi’s current situation, speculating that the six-time Ballon d’Or winner “probably has a psychological problem.”

Koeman, on the other hand, took a subtle dig at Pirlo over his comments and pointed out that “mental issues” have no place in Barcelona.

"I don't believe in psychologists and mental [issues],” the Duthman pointed out. “If you play for Barca, pressure exists, you know that, and you have to overcome it."

Reflecting on Barcelona’s unexpected defeats against Cadiz and lower-seeded Getafe, Koeman admitted that “a lot of things” are difficult to comprehend when a dominant club starts to decline.

"It's difficult for [the fans] because if most of the time [you are] on top, winning titles, then it's difficult to understand why we lose against Cadiz or Getafe," Koeman wondered.

“Sometimes it's difficult to explain. The whole situation of the club is a difficult one,” he admitted. “A lot of things are not sure at this club and it's always difficult to have the trust and to have the rest to be a winning team."