Martino: "What's happening with Neymar isn't normal"

Barcelona coach Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino spoke to the press ahead of his side’s Liga BBVA match away at Real Sociedad on Saturday (20:00 CET).
The Argentine discussed the team’s improvement and how the affair surrounding Neymar’s signing is affecting the Brazilian.
Does Neymar look worried? “If I had to answer from what I see in games and in training, I would say he isn’t. But it’s also true that people sometimes keep their troubles to themselves. I’m not with the player 24 hours a day to know how he feels. He seems normal to me, but it’s also true that everything that’s happening around him isn’t normal.”
Campaign against Neymar: “I’m not talking about a campaign; I’m talking about an abnormal situation. It’s not normal to see an institution’s president leave, and everything that’s happening. That’s what I mean by saying it’s an abnormal situation.”
Effect of High Court investigation into tax evasion? “I don’t know how to answer that. It doesn’t surprise me; it’s not something that goes completely unnoticed to me. It’s something I’m getting used to. It isn’t something I should give my opinion about. I concentrate on football, which is what gives us the most satisfaction.”
Leo Messi and Neymar: “When they’ve played together they’ve done well. I know there’s always a lot of expectation over the two of them and what they can achieve together, but we have to think about the group. What’s most important is to keep on growing as a team. There’s always room for improvement.”
Has the team matured? “I’m not sure if that is related to an improvement in our play or the way we’ve lined up in certain games. When three out-and-out forwards play, it’s more difficult to control the match. With an extra midfielder our control is better and we don’t need to run so much.”
Barça’s ‘little men’: “Their presence guarantees a similarity to the club’s best periods. Although people identify more with this style, I think that if teams handle different facets of the game then they become less predictable for other teams.”
Bayern Munich as Champions League favourites: “They’re the reigning European champions. They’ve added to the quality of footballers they had, plus their new coach, by strengthening with players like [Mario] Götze. I think we’d all name Bayern if asked to name a favourite.”
José Mourinho’s comments on ‘worst Barça team in years’: “I don’t read anything into it, I don’t have an opinion on that. I focus on football and on my team. I’m not interested in things outside of the club, either positive or negative.”
Renewing deal as Barça coach: “We’ll see. At the moment we’ll concentrate on the here and now, which is most important. If everything goes well, we have 21 games left, and that’s what we're aiming for. I haven’t had any meetings about next season, and when I do there will be nothing I can comment on publicly until the end of the season.”