Neymar: La Liga is highly competitive

Barcelona stars Neymar and Claudio Bravo take a selfie as they parade with their team through the streets of Barcelona to celebrate their La Liga title.

Valencia - Barca held a nine-point advantage over Atletico in April before suffering a drop in form

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By Reuters

Published: Thu 19 May 2016, 8:11 PM

Last updated: Fri 20 May 2016, 12:45 AM

Barcelona players should not be too disheartened about missing out on the Champions League final as Spain's domination of European club football shows the highly-competitive level of the Spanish game, Barcelona striker Neymar said.
Sevilla rammed home Spain's stranglehold in Europe on Wednesday when they won the Europa League for the third time in a row, with a 3-1 victory over Liverpool. Meanwhile, two Madrid teams - Real and Atletico - are set to contest the Champions League final in Milan on May 28.
"The presence of two Spanish teams in that game illustrates just how well Barcelona have done to win La Liga. I congratulate the two teams that have reached the final," Neymar said.
"This is proof that the Spanish league is very difficult. We have to give more value to this league title that we have achieved," the Brazilian told Globoesporte.com ahead of Barcelona's King's Cup final with Sevilla this weekend.
Barcelona, with other stars such as Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, carried off the Champions League trophy last year for the fifth time, but were eliminated from the competition in the quarterfinals by Atletico. Real Madrid won it the year before.
Neymar said Barcelona were initially disappointed at being knocked out of Europe this year, but he said that result helped them to "dig deep" to reverse a loss of form and eventually win La Liga.
Barca held a nine-point advantage over Atletico in April before suffering a drop in form which saw their lead cut to one point heading into the final weekend of the competition.
A 3-0 win at Granada on Saturday allowed Barca to finish one point clear of Real Madrid, bringing them their sixth league title in the last eight seasons.
"I'm proud of the league we have had, not just for my performances but from the whole team," he said.
"I have to congratulate my team mates for the hard work. We've had to sweat a lot to achieve this title, which was a difficult one. But in the end, we had our reward." 

Reuters

Published: Thu 19 May 2016, 8:11 PM

Last updated: Fri 20 May 2016, 12:45 AM

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