Barcelona defender Gerard Pique admits it was tough to return to domestic action after their sensational Champions League comeback against Paris Saint-Germain.

The Catalan giants defied the odds to stun the Parisian outfit at Camp Nou last week as they claimed a 6-1 victory to wrap up a 6-5 aggregate win and progress to the Champions League quarter-finals.

Barca were brought back down to earth over the weekend however, slumping to a 2-1 defeat at lowly Deportivo La Coruna as Real Madrid reclaimed top spot in La Liga.

Pique concedes that the effort the players put in against PSG on Wednesday, with three goals coming inside the final seven minutes, had an impact on their display against Depor.

“After a huge effort like on Wednesday, with all the adrenaline and excitement, it’s tougher to compete,” said Pique.

“We weren’t able to play our game the way we like.”

Barcelona now trail Real Madrid by two points in La Liga and Los Blancos also have a game in hand as they seek to claim the Spanish title for the first time since 2012.

Barcelona are 2.88 to win La Liga outright and Real Madrid are 1.40. Sevilla are three points behind Barcelona in third spot after a 1-1 draw with Leganes over the weekend and they are 51.00 to land the La Liga title this season.

Barcelona host Valencia in the next round of La Liga fixtures, while Real head to Alaves and Sevilla face a tough home game against Atletico Madrid.