Barcelona left-back Jordi Alba has revealed that the Champions League game against Manchester United affected the performance against Real Sociedad in the league.
The Spanish international defender was speaking after Barcelona stumbled to a 2-1 win over the Basque club at home.
According to Jordi Alba, Barcelona expended a lot of energy against Manchester United in the second leg of their Champions League last 16 tie and that was the major reason behind the lacklustre showing against Real Sociedad.
Barcelona needed three wins from the last six league games to be crowned Spanish La Liga champions for the second successive season and they got one of those wins at home to Real Sociedad despite the fact that it was largely unconvincing.
The Blaugrana took the lead on the stroke of the halftime interval through Clement Lenglet.
Real Sociedad stunned the Nou Camp with a 62nd-minute equaliser from Juanmi but they were only level for just two minutes after Barcelona skipper Lionel Messi setup Alba to score what proved to be the winning goal.
Barcelona can wrap up the title as early as midweek if they beat Deportivo Alaves and nearest challengers Atletico Madrid fail to pick up at least one point against Champions League chasers Valencia.
