Luis Enrique says Barcelona deserved to win despite Valencia dominance

Luis Enrique highlighted the efficiency of his Barcelona team after they managed to emerge from a difficult match against competitive Valencia side with three points. 

And as he left his post-match press conference, he said that Barça are "not reinforced, but super-reinforced" after claiming the victory. He also pointed that the fans that filled Camp Nou had helped push his players on. 

"If you do your work, it puts pressure on those that play afterwards," Luis Enrique said with regards to playing before title rivals Real Madrid. 

"And even more so when you play against a team like Valencia. They have given us the most problems at Camp Nou this season, especially in the first half. 

"But we have done our work and now the others [Atletico and Real Madrid] have to do their work."

Despite acknowledging Valencia's fine performance, Lucho still felt Barça were worthy winners. 

"For me, it is a fair result," he continued. "Valencia had their chances, mainly in the first half, but winning is based on efficiency and they missed their big chance with the penalty that [Claudio] Bravo stopped.  

"These players [Barcelona's] are winners. That is why they play for Barça. Since the first day I have seen them all ready, looking good and ready to work and to win titles."

The Barcelona boss had no problems admitting that in the second half "we were more comfortable, but we did commit a lot of mistakes in the first half, which is not normal for us. 

"But we improved positionally [to overcome problems] and we began to dominate the game, creating chances after the break."

Bravo played a key role, saving a first half spot from Dani Parejo, and Lucho praised sacked sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta for bringing both the Chilean and Marc-Andre ter Stegen to the club last summer. 

Without naming names, Luus Enrique also said that "there were players that didn't play [against Valencia] because of risk of injury", pointing out that a hectic schedule can lead to a lack of freshness.

Andres Iniesta wasn't included in the squad on Saturday, while Jordi Alba did not play either.