Barcelona expect frosty return to Camp Nou with recovery a long way off

Barcelona's recovery begins against Getafe on Sunday but the pain felt from their Champions League collapse at Anfield is likely to get worse before it gets better.

For Getafe, who stand on the brink of their own meteoric upset of finishing in La Liga's top four, the game at Camp Nou is pivotal but for Barca's hurting players, it could feel more like a wake.

"There are going to be some difficult days ahead, but we have to go again," said coach Ernesto Valverde.

A week before, their fans had roared them off, ecstatic after a 3-0 victory over Liverpool put them within touching distance of their first European final since 2015.

When the names of the players, and coach, are read out before kick-off this weekend, the reaction will be instructive, pointing to just how much Tuesday's 4-0 defeat has spoiled an otherwise excellent season that could yet end with a domestic double.

"We have to be really self-critical about what happened," Luis Suarez said. "There are a lot of things to evaluate and to think about.

"We have to apologise for our attitude and realise the criticism is going to rain down on us now. We're really upset, we're hurting a lot. We're humans and we feel the pain."