Barcelona midfielder Sergi Busquets played down the controversy around teammate Gerard Pique after their draw with Villarreal.

After the full-time whistle there was still significant focus on the Blaugrana and officials following Pique's comments in mid-week.

Busquets however refused to be drawn on the issue in the mixed zone and simply gave them his support and advocated more assistance for those out in the middle.

"It is difficult to be a referee, the matches are getting more and more intense and the referees have to receive more help and preparation," he explained.

Lionel Messi's injury time free-kick cancelled out Nicola Sansone's opener yet Barcelona created a number of chances leading the Spanish holding midfielder to bemoan the club's bad luck.

"We deserved a lot more from this match but we didn't have any luck with our chances."