Champions League final loss harder to take than relegation for Barnet boss Davids

Barnet boss Edgar Davids admitted he is fully aware of the consequences of the club’s relegation to non-league football that was confirmed by defeat to the Cobblers at Sixfields on Saturday.
CENTRE OF ATTENTION - Barnet boss Edgar Davids faces the media following Barnet's defeat to the Cobblers, and relegation to non-LeagueCENTRE OF ATTENTION - Barnet boss Edgar Davids faces the media following Barnet's defeat to the Cobblers, and relegation to non-League
CENTRE OF ATTENTION - Barnet boss Edgar Davids faces the media following Barnet's defeat to the Cobblers, and relegation to non-League

But player-manager Davids does not believe the demotion out of the Football League ranks among his all-time career lows, and cited the example of the 2003 Champions League final defeat he was involved with while playing for Juventus against Milan as an example of a more painful experience.

Town sank the Bees 2-0 with goals from Roy O’Donovan and Luke Guttridge to end their eight-season stay in the Football League.

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It means the north London club will begin life at their new ground, The Hive, in the Blue Square Bet Premier and doubts remain over whether Davids will be in the managerial chair when the campaign kicks off.

Relegation was difficult for Davids to take, having reached the points total pre-agreed with the club’s board of directors, but he played down the personal impact.

“It’s a bitter pill to swallow and the players are very disappointed but they gave it everything they had,” he said. “But it wasn’t all down to this last game, we had a lot of opportunities during the season but didn’t take them.

“The players can look themselves in the eye and know they have given it everything they had. But you have to be sharp enough to take the chances you create especially against a team like Northampton. They were clinical in the second half.

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“It’s even more disappointing because we have reached all the objectives that the chairman set and reached the 51 points target but we’ve still gone down.

“Losing a Champions League final was a bad experience for me but I’m aware of the consequences for the club going out of the Football League.”

Davids, who replaced Mark Robson as the club’s manager in November, confirmed he will hold talks with Barnet chairman Tony Kleanthous about his future at the club.

“This is a different experience for me,” he said. “There will be consequences of playing non-league football for the club next season. As for my position, I will have to sit down with the chairman and discuss things.”