Barcelona midfield maestro Xavi has expressed his frustration after Almeria parked the proverbial bus at Camp Nou on Saturday as La Blaugrana struggled to a 1-0 win.

The 29-year-old's comments betray the difference between the Spanish top-flight and the Premier League, where such stifling tactics are commonplace and come as par for the course when 'Big Four' meet relegation strugglers.

And England's top sides can even be guilty of a touch of negativity themselves, as Barca discovered when Chelsea took their 'anti-football' to Catalunya in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final last season.

Xavi claimed Almeria's tactics reached new heights as the Andalusia club attempted to hold out for ninety minutes against Pep Guardiola's high-flying side, who secured the win with a stunning goal from youngster Pedro.

But Barca's tormentor in chief Xavi concedes the European champions will have to get used to teams doing that as they try to find a way of stopping arguably the greatest footballing side of all time.

"I have never been marked like that. It was ­obsessive," he told the Daily Star. "Even when they had the ball or when I was going to take a corner, they marked me.

"It's a shame that they came here to pack the defence, but we will have to get used to it."

Following Real Madrid's 2-1 defeat to Sevilla on Sunday evening, Barca have a three point lead at the top of La Liga after six rounds of matches.