Luis Enrique insisted he had no regrets over his
decision to rest Lionel Messi and Neymar during
Barcelona's 1-0 defeat to Real Sociedad.
Having been afforded an extended Christmas
break, the pair returned to the club two days later
than the rest of the squad.
Both men were subsequently left on the bench for
the start of Barca's La Liga trip to the Anoeta
Stadium, and watched on from the touchline as
Jordi Alba put the ball in his own net in the
second minute.
That unfortunate error from the defender proved
to be the decisive moment as, despite enjoying
more of the ball for the remainder of the match,
Barca failed to find an equaliser.
Messi was introduced at half-time, with Neymar
brought on shortly before the hour mark, but
neither man was able to conjure up a leveller for
their team as Sociedad completed a hat-trick of
home league wins over Real Madrid, Atletico and
Barcelona this season.
Defeat ended Barca's 11-match unbeaten run in
all competitions, and also meant they missed out
on the chance to climb to the top of the table
above Real, who had lost 2-1 at Valencia earlier
in the day.
When asked about resting Messi and Neymar,
the coach replied: "This isn't the time to regret
those decisions.
"I look at the season as a whole and I do what's
best for the
team. I thought that it was best not to risk [them].
"[The own goal was] Real Sociedad's only
dangerous chance. We controlled the match,
especially in the second half when we got closer
to their net.
"We deserved more than that. We were a bit
unlucky not to have scored the tying goal. Real
Sociedad played a complete match."
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