We can't concede goals in every game- Messi fumes after Athletic draw

The Catalans have dropped seven points in their last three games.

Barcelona's La Liga campaign has got slightly derailed as the Camp Nou side have dropped seven points in their last three games. The Blaugrana played out another frustrating 1-1 draw against Athletic Bilbao on Saturday. The Catalan side were completely outplayed by the  Basque outfit. Oscar de Marcos put Athletic ahead just before the break. But, Munir El Haddidi equalized with just six minutes of regulation time left.

Barcelona's latest struggles has clearly frustrated their star Lionel Messi, as the striker demanded improvement from the side. "We are not anxious because the season is long and has only just started, but we are angry about the last results, We didn't expect them. Against Leganes we played well in the first half and lost, and today we created chances to win but couldn't," said Messi.

The striker emphasized more on improving defensively as the Catalan side are making some huge defensive mistakes in almost every game. "We are aware that we have to be much stronger defensively, Last year, we hardly conceded goals. But, now teams are scoring against us with their first attempt. We cannot afford to concede goals in every game. We have to improve and become stronger in defence, which is the most important thing." added the Argentine.

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Messi's strike partner Luis Suarez also had some stern words and asserted that Barcelona should not always depend on Messi to rescue them. "He is the best in the world, but we can't rely on Leo to always sort everything out for us. The other players here are here on our own merits and we can't depend on him or (Sergio) Busquets. We should have been winning when they came on to the pitch," said Suarez.

Messi too agreed with Suarez's comments regarding Barca's over-dependence on him as he said, "We have the squad and the players to be a great team and not depend on anyone like it always used to be at Barca."

Barcelona are still on top of La Liga with 14 points thanks to a healthy goal-difference, which separates them from arch-rivals Real Madrid, who sit in second place with the same number of points.