.After Losing Copa del Rey To Real Madrid –

Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino maintained his side can still return to their former glories after they were beaten 2-1 by a Gareth Bale inspired Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final on Wednesday.
The Welshman ran half the length of the field to score the winner five minutes from time and subjected Barcelona to a third consecutive defeat in all competitions which leaves them on the verge of failing to win a major trophy for the first time in six years.
“When you look at the age of the players in this team it is evident that Barcelona have a long road still to run and with a lot better results than this year”, said Martino.
Barcelona were dumped out of the UEFA Champions League before the semi-final stage for the first time in seven years last week by Atletico Madrid, and also lie in third-place, four points adrift of Atletico, with just five games remaining in La Liga.
“Obviously it is not a happy moment”, Martino admitted. “It has been a very hard week for us, but there is nothing else we can do but look ahead to what remains in the league.
“It is a very hard blow to take because the expectations for today were huge and it is a final so everyone was desperate to win”.