FC Barcelona midfielder and Ivory Coast international Yaya Toure (26) spoke at a press conference after training on Thursday about how hard it is for the team to demonstrate the same form as last year.

“It’s much harder after winning six titles, we can’t make any mistakes any more. Everybody thinks we’re unbeatable, and that’s not true. We are human and teams are fired up when they play us”, said Toure.

“There are so many games, and after what happened last year, it’s not easy, there are difficult times in sport, and this is one of them. We don’t just have to think about beating Malaga and Stuttgart. We have to be at one hundred per cent and play easy, delicate football. But we are well prepared and focused on our objectives … however, both the League and Champions League are going to be very hard this time round”.

Speaking about Barca’s next challenge against Malaga, he said, “It will be difficult because they are a good team. We can’t waste this chance at home because we need three points to stay on top of the table.”

Toure also spoke about Dani Alves who is likely to return for the next game after missing three weeks through injury, “He is a very important player, a machine that is always ready to run. I hope he gets fit soon and to be able help us”. Thierry Henry got back to his goalscoring form against Racing and on him the Ivorian said, “He looks fine to me. He is a true professional, and is regaining confidence. He is working hard in training”.

Toure spoke in Catalan on Sunday, surprising many at the press conference, on which he said, “I am taking classes at home with my wife because it’s very important for me to be able to speak the language of the country”.