Europa League: Barcelona's Xavi lauds 'pure talent of players' after draw against Frankfurt

Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez has expressed delight over his team's equalising goal that helped them secure a 1-1 away draw against Eintracht Frankfurt in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final on Thursday. Barcelona is now 14 games unbeaten in all competitions as they continue their resurgence under their Spanish boss.

Eintracht Frankfurt took the lead shortly after half-time when Ansgar Knauff scored a stunner that went past goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen. However, the Catalan club managed to come back and score a quintessential Blaugrana style goal of their own, with Ferran Torres finishing off a glorious move involving Frenkie de Jong and Ousmane Dembele.

"The goal is a great goal, pure talent of the players. It was a very difficult and physical opponent. We didn't know how to stop their transitions, and we were thicker than normal, and the pitch wasn't in the best conditions," Xavi told reporters after the match.

"We generated fewer chances than normal, but we're satisfied with the result. Normally, the one who proposes generates more, but today it was the other way around. This is Europe. Everything is complicated. It will be complicated at Camp Nou, but we play in front of our fans," the Barcelona boss added.

Torres also expressed pleasure over scoring the equaliser for his side. "To go behind but end up drawing might end up a very valuable result for the second leg. Frankfurt was a tough rival – they made things difficult," he said.

"The main thing was that we were patient, and the reward was that we got a good equaliser. For a striker like me, it's always important to get your goals, to help the team. You always expect the quarter-finals of a UEFA competition to produce a tough rival, but we are Barça. We are obligated to compete for every trophy, and winning the Europa League is an objective," the former Manchester City player added.

Captain Sergio Busquets, too was also all praises for his team. "They have played their weapons, but we have also arrived. We have had control. The pitch was not good, and it was difficult for us to play. We had some difficulties, but we were talking to try to find some superiority," he said.

"The goal was a great play. We can't do anything but win now. Barcelona always has to be a candidate for everything. We're doing things well, there's a lot to improve, but with the track record we have... but it won't be easy," the Barca captain added.

The two sides will meet again in a week's time at Camp Nou. Barca head to Levante in La Liga over the weekend, while Eintracht Frankfurt host SC Freiburg in the Bundesliga.