Edgar Davids said Dani Lopez “pulled a rabbit out of the hat” to help Barnet complete a 1-0 home win against Alfreton Town.

It was the Spanish striker’s final match of his loan spell from Stevenage and his 25 yard curled strike sealed victory for the Bees.

If a club can agree a deal, Lopez will be allowed to leave Stevenage during the current January transfer window and Davids admitted Barnet would like to keep him.

“We are trying to keep him at the club but that is going to be a hard task,” the Bees head coach said.

“The goal is the kind of thing you expect from him. As we say in Holland, he pulled a rabbit out of a hat.”

Davids admitted it wasn’t an easy game for the Bees and said his side must be more ruthless when they create chances.

He added: “They (Alfreton) have a solid tactic, a solid squad and are third in the table so it was never going to be easy.

“With the chances we created we have to be more clinical and more determined to score.”

The victory ended a run of three straight defeats for Barnet in the Skrill Premier and Davids was pleased with the defensive strength shown by his side.

Goalkeeper Nick Jupp made his first start for the Bees in the absence of the injured Graham Stack and the Dutchman was impressed with the 24-year-old.

“He has done very well and I am happy about that. He gives the team confidence in defence,” Davids said.

When asked about the injuries to Stack and Keanu Marsh-Brown, the Barnet head coach explained: “Stacky has been playing for a while with an injury and because we had important games he couldn't miss them.

“It has obviously got worse and we will have to see how long he will be missing, it might be a month.

“Keanu picked up something after the Luton match, we hope for the next game he will be able to play.”