Athletic Bilbao coach Ernesto Valverde paid tribute to Barcelona after last night's defeat.

Athletic fell 5-2 at home to Barca.

"We received too many blows to be able to stage a comeback," said Valverde.

"Barça are in a great moment of form and they seem very focused. They are an extraordinary side. They were superior to us tonight but we wanted to compete with them. We tried to stop them from playing their game but they brought out all of their heavy artillery."