Barcelona Have Had Their Bad Patch - Puyol

Carles Puyol has declared today that Barcelona have already been through their bad patch this season, but that winning the treble will be very hard...

All the talk in La Liga might be about when Barcelona might slip up this season, but according to Carles Puyol, they already have.

The Spanish defender declared today that losing to Numancia on the opening day, and then drawing with Racing Santander, was their bad patch.

"All the teams pass bad patches, yes, but we have already passed ours, in the two first days, when we lost and drew," he told Marca.

"It was hard, we came from two difficult seasons, but we have trusted in the methods of working."

Despite their good form and seemingly unassailable lead at the top of La Liga though, Puyol knows there is still a long way to go before anything is won.

"We are conscious that the season is very long and that we have still not won anything. The treble is very hard. For example, in the Copa Del Rey you have a bad game and you go out," he declared.

However, aside from Real Madrid, Barcelona look the only team capable of winning La Liga, and the Catalan captain paid tribute to their rivals today.

"One must respect them, they are a great team that have won five consecutive matches. What is important are the points, they give you confidence and with the confidence the good play comes," he mused.

There had been rumours in the press this week of a possible move for Barcelona star Lionel Messi to Real Madrid, but Puyol rubbished them today, saying, "In football these things are published, but with Messi it is very difficult, he is happy here."

The defender also spoke briefly about stories this week that the departures of Ronaldinho and Deco had helped Barcelona, saying they were unfair.

"It is not fair, they are players that gave a lot to the team. We are all guilty, the team went through a bad spell," he concluded.

James Walker-Roberts, Goal.com