Ahead of the Barcelona derby this weekend, Sergio García, the Espanyol forward, has claimed that the more noise he hears in the Camp Nou, the more motivated he will.

“I love the fact that people can shout at you a bit more,” the Espanyol forward said, adding that the key to obtaining a good result at the Camp Nou is to be “brave and to compete”.

“We know it’s a difficult ground, be we can’t go there afraid. The team is convinced we can get something,” the forward said.

“You have to be intense in these games, stick together and not make mistakes. You are punished for mistakes you make on special occasions like these. We’ll compete as much as we can and fight for everything,” the forward added.

He disagreed that Barça were going through a tough patch: “They have great players and we’re just focussed on the game,” adding that even without Neymar “they are equally dangerous. Another new player has come in who has shown his quality. It won’t be different because Neymar’s gone but we also have the tools to counteract their play”.

At a personal level, Sergio García admitted that the level in Qatar is “different” but that he’s feeling good on his return to Spain and that the team is aiming to qualify for Europe this season.