Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez says his players want to know how at least 20,000 Eintracht Frankfurt fans gained access to the home end at Camp Nou on Thursday as his side were knocked out of the Europa League.
Frankfurt won 3-2 on the night as they stunned favourites Barca 4-3 on aggregate to progress to the semifinals, where they will take on Premier League side West Ham United.
The German side were officially given 5,000 tickets for the game at Camp Nou, but one source told ESPN there were closer to 30,000 inside the stadium to watch the game, with white shirts everywhere you looked among the 79,468 crowd.
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“The atmosphere did not help at all, that’s clear,” Xavi said in a news conference after his side’s elimination. “It affected us and we didn’t play well, but that should not serve as an excuse, we also have to congratulate Frankfurt. They were better across the tie.
“It was like a final, with the stadium split. It was disappointing. Even our players commented on it. The dressing room wants to know what has happened. We will seek an explanation.
“This cannot happen when you are playing at home. It hasn’t helped, that’s clear. It’s an error in planning and calculations. The club is going to find out what happened.”
Supporters of Eintracht Frankfurt celebrate their Europa League quarterfinal victory over Barcelona at Camp Nou on Thursday. Getty Images
Ahead of the game, Xavi had called on Barca supporters to create a hostile atmosphere like the one they faced in Germany in the first leg last week.
But Barca’s players were jeered and whistled by the away supporters when they came out to warm up, setting the tone for the night. Barca’s ultras — the supporters who occupy the stand behind one of the goals — boycotted the first 10 minutes of the second half in protest at so many Frankfurt fans gaining access to the home end.
“Xavi is right, this was a serious…
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