Barca blame bad run on tight schedule

After a second straight league home defeat, Barcelona's assistant coach Marcus Sorg attributed the team's struggles to a demanding schedule that has taken its toll on the players.

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Barcelona have been struggling in La Liga for over a month and a 1-0 loss to lowly Leganes on Dec 15 left them with one win in their last six league matches.

They remain top of the standings on 38 points, but level with Atletico Madrid - who they host on Dec 21 - and one point ahead of Real Madrid in third, with both their title rivals having a game in hand.

They are still top thanks to their brilliant start to the season, when they won 14 of their first 16 matches in all competitions. But while they have been excellent in the Champions League with five victories in six games, they have lost their way domestically.

"We have to learn from this experience because the schedule has been tough on the players," Sorg told Dazn. "We have played a lot of very demanding games in a few days and the team is not used to this."