Quique Setien Says Barcelona President Will 'Give Me Time' in New Role

Barcelona manager Quique Setien has said he has been assured by club president Josep Maria Bartomeu he will be given time at the Camp Nou.

The 61-year-old succeeded Ernesto Valverde in the top job at Barca earlier in January. In his first three games in charge, the Blaugrana have beaten Granada 1-0 at home, struggled to a 2-1 Copa del Rey victory over third-tier Ibiza and lost 2-0 to Valencia.

The defeat against Los Che meant Barca surrendered top spot in La Liga to Real Madrid for the first time since October. They trail Los Blancos by three points.

Despite his tough start, Setien said he has been reassured by Bartomeu he will have time to make his methods work, per Ivan San Antonio of Marca:

"It's true he spoke to me, he put a lot of confidence in me and told me that he would give me time. I don't know a lot of people by name yet, there's lots of things I don't know about a club of this size. He told me to take my time and work with my ideas.

"Truthfully, I don't usually get worn down by looking at them saying good or bad things about me. I know what I have to worry about, don't take it badly but I don't read or listen to anything. I'm focused on doing my job as well as possible."

Despite what Bartomeu may have said, Barca's fans are unlikely to be too patient with Setien if he allows Real to take a stranglehold on the title race. The Catalan giants are back in action in the Copa del Rey against Leganes on Thursday before they host Levante in La Liga on Sunday.

Barca lost 3-1 to Levante in November, and they will view Sunday's match as an opportunity to take more points off the Blaugrana given the champions are under pressure.

Having taken over in midseason, Setien was never likely to have an easy start, but he already has a must-win game on his hands because Barcelona cannot afford to lose any more ground to Real. 

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Zinedine Zidane's side may not be playing the best football, but they look relentless. Their only league defeat this term was against Mallorca in October.

The second Clasico of the season is set to take place at the Santiago Bernabeu on March 1.

It could be crucial in deciding the destination of the title, but only if Setien can get Barca back to winning ways. Otherwise Real could open up a substantial gap.