Luis Enrique rejected criticism that he devalued the Catalan Super Cup by fielding an experimental side in the 1-0 defeat to Espanyol on Tuesday.
Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez were among a number of players given a few days off after the weekend win in Valencia, forcing Barca to call up a number of youngsters from the B team for the match in Tarragona.
Arda Turan, Denis Suarez, Andre Gomes, Jeremy Mathieu, Paco Alcacer and Jordi Masip were the only first team players involved, all starting the game which was settled by Felipe Caicedo's first-half effort.
"This is a world full of all types of criticism: constructive, destructive, pathetic..." Luis Enrique said about his team selection. "I have to think first about my team and we have a brutal schedule. With the games we have and the transatlantic journeys for many of the players, I do what I consider is best for the club.
"I accept the criticism, but I make the decisions I think are best for the team. You have to put yourself in my situation, although I accept that it could have annoyed some people."
Barca dominated the possession throughout the game, but there were very few good chances for either side other than the goal.
The Barca boss will have been encouraged by the performance from Brazilian defender Marlon Santos, who also impressed in preseason, while there were also run-outs for Nili, Moises Delgado, Alex Carbonell and Carles Alena.
"It was a good game," the Blaugrana boss added. "I don't think the result reflects what happened, but I'm happy with the performance of all my players.
"We deserved more. We had the ball and the possession all the time and [Espanyol] scored with their only moment of danger.
"It's allowed me to see some of the Barca B players in a real competition and also to see performances from some of the players who haven't played as many minutes."