Barcelona’s title hopes were hit hard  by last night’s insipid goalless draw at Getafe, according to frustrated skipper Xavi.

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Up against an organised defensive effort from the hosts, Barca created very few chances, with home keeper Vicente Guiata only making two real saves over the course of the 90 minutes.

In the second half Barca could muster nothing more than a pair of Lionel Messi free-kicks, one of which crashed against the crossbar with Guiata well beaten, and Xavi admitted his team’s failure to collect all three points is a blow.

“A draw is not a good result,” he said. “We’re now four points behind Real Madrid so this is a step backwards.”
Xavi did, however, claim that Barca created enough chances to win, adding: “It was a game where we’d normally make the breakthrough.

“They were very strong at the back, but we had four chances and we didn’t take any of them. We are usually potent up front, but today it just wouldn’t go in.”

The experienced midfielder also backed boss Luis Enrique in the face of regular criticism that he seems intent upon repeatedly changing his tactics and personnel from game to game, rather than establishing a more consistent 
approach.

Having lined up against Paris Saint-Germain in a 3-4-3 formation in midweek, Barca returned to their more accustomed 4-3-3 at Getafe.

Although Messi’s largely central position meant they spent the majority of the game without anyone on the right wing.

But Xavi, who was recalled after being left out against PSG, said: “We are comfortable in any formation. It just depends on what the coach wants and the demands of each match.”

Enrique himself put a brave face on his team’s performance, arguing they deserved to take all three points.
“I’m not unhappy with what we’ve done,” he said. 

“We were superior to Getafe, we had a lot of attacks and delivered a lot of crosses, but we paid the price for not taking advantage of our 
opportunities.”

Enrique also claimed to be unconcerned by the four-point gap to Madrid, saying: “Earlier on we were four points ahead of them, now it’s the other way around. There’s a long way to go.”