Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez said he was surprised by Arsenal‘s intensity and tactical fouls as the LaLiga champions were beaten 5-3 by the Premier League side in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha twice gave Barca the lead, but goals from Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and a Leandro Trossard brace took Arsenal out of sight.
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Ferran Torres briefly got Barca — who wore a white kit for the first time in 44 years — back into the game late on, only for substitute Fabio Vieira to restore Arsenal’s two-goal lead in the 89th minute.
“It was a good game for the fans but not so much for the coaches,” Xavi said in the post-game news conference.
“It was up and down. You could tell Arsenal are much further down the line than us [in preseason]. That said, we were far too soft in defence.
“There were positives and negatives, though. I said to Mikel at the end of the game, it was like a Champions League tie with the intensity they put in.
“It was not normal for a friendly, but I understand everyone wants to win. For us, it was our first friendly and we went into it off the back of loads of players having had a bug.”
