Ernesto Valverde Insists He Is 'Not Afraid' of Treble Pressure Following Athletic Club Win

Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde has insisted he is not afraid of the pressures he may find himself under as the season reaches its finale, with his side still

Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde has insisted he is not afraid of the pressures he may find himself under as the season reaches its finale, with his side still fighting on all three fronts. 

The Catalonians took another step towards being crowned Primera Division champions on Sunday thanks to a convincing 2-0 win over Athletic Club, with Paco Alcacer, who was called upon due to the unavailability of the suspended Luis Suarez, and Lionel Messi securing all three points via a scintillating first half display. 

6⃣ games in a row scoring✅
2⃣5⃣ goals in #LaLiga✅
Barça @Viber Man of the Match ✅
Perfect day for Leo #Messi 👌👑
Vote the MVP in each game: https://t.co/5kgccwprcl pic.twitter.com/zDRr0cSwLf

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) March 18, 2018

And despite the Camp Nou manager having not lifted a piece of silverware since the 2015/16 Spanish Super Cup, when speaking to Marca post-match, the 54-year-old was insistent he and his side are not concerned with the expectancy that will be placed upon them should their sensational season continue. 

"I'm not afraid that people will begin to expect us to win the treble", Valverde explained. "They may say we have a chance to do it, but it's very far away.

🔵🔴💪 84,053 fans at Camp Nou today. Thanks fans! 👏 #ForçaBarça #BarçaAthletic pic.twitter.com/ibM83oN9T3

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) March 18, 2018

"Passion comes to the fore when you win, and the opposite happens when you lose or draw, our players just need to focus on continuing in this way."

Sunday's victory over the Basque Country outfit stretched Barcelona's unbeaten league run to 29 games this season, as well as extended their league lead to 11 points following Atletico Madrid's 2-1 defeat, and the Spaniard admitted it is a target of theirs to become the first La Liga side to produce an 'invincible' campaign in modern history. 

💪 With the win in #BarçaAthletic, FC Barcelona have now gone 36 games in @LaLiga unbeaten. Let's keep going! 👏🔵🔴 #ForçaBarça! 👏🔵🔴 #ForçaBarça pic.twitter.com/IwsgdpgphB

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) March 18, 2018

"I'd love [finishing unbeaten], but why talk about it now?", Valverde added. "We could lose our next game; we just have to wait and see what happens.

"The rest of the season is very tough, but we know if we maintain this form we'll be closer to our goal."

Following the upcoming international break, Barca return to league action when they travel to Seville on March 31, and both will be eyeing their respective Champions League quarter-finals which are scheduled during the mid-week fallout.