'His goalkeeper gave 69 passes!' – Getafe coach fires back at Barca's De Jong

The Spanish manager believes it's the Catalans and not his side that struggle to play attractive football

Jose Bordalas has hit back at Frenkie de Jong over his criticism of 's style of play, saying he had no interest in playing like .

Getafe reportedly used De Jong's criticism as motivation to stun the midfielder's former club in the last 32.

But Bordalas responded by criticising Barcelona, who edged Getafe 2-1 when the teams met in last month.

The Spaniard said he had no desire to see his side play like Barca, with goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen having played 69 passes – the fourth most on the pitch – in that clash.

"When we played against Barca, his goalkeeper gave 69 passes," Getafe coach Bordalas told Radio Marca on Thursday.

"I don't want my goalkeeper to give 69 passes, something we would not be doing well.

"I want to create goalscoring chances."

Getafe will face in the last 16 of the Europa League, while they are fourth in La Liga, 10 points behind second-placed Barcelona.

De Jong's criticism of Getafe's style of play came after seeing them defeat his former club Ajax in the first leg of their round of 32 Europa League tie.

"The match between Getafe and Ajax was painful for me, especially frustrating," De Jong told NOS Sport last month.

"Getafe doesn't play to entertain the public, I find it annoying to watch their games."

The Spaniards won the first leg 2-0 on home soil before falling to a 2-1 loss in the second leg a week later - a result that ensured they still progressed on aggregate.

Getafe's home clash against Inter could now be played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus, a possibility fans are strongly opposing.

"It has taken a lot for us to make it this far in European competition and this is a historic match for Getafe," Getafe fans were quoted by Marca.

"We don't want this match to remembered as the one that was played behind closed doors."

Inter are set to host the first leg on March 12 with the game to be played behind closed doors in Milan as continues to battle against the virus.