Tuesday 16 February 2016

Xavi Hernandez - The backbone of barcelona








QUICK FACTS

NAME
Xavi Hernández
OCCUPATION
Soccer Player
BIRTH DATE
January 25, 1980 (age 36)
EDUCATION
La Masia
PLACE OF BIRTH
Terrassa, Spain
AKA
Xavi
Xavi Hernández
NICKNAME
The Puppet Master
La Computadora (The Computer)
FULL NAME
Xavier Hernández Creus
ZODIAC SIGN
Aquarius

Club information
Current team                
Al Sadd
Number6
Youth career
1991–1997Barcelona
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
1997–2000Barcelona B61(3)
1998–2015Barcelona505(58)
2015–Al Sadd13(2)
National team
1997Spain U1710(2)
1997–1998Spain U1810(0)
1999Spain U206(2)
1998–2001Spain U2125(7)
2000Spain U236(2)
2000–2014Spain133(13)
1998–2014Catalonia11(2)

SAYINGS ABOUT XAVI





Thiago Alcântara, former Barcelona team-mate “Xavi is eternal. Even when he is not at his very best level physically, he plays a kind of football that gives oxygen to a team, play, speed. It makes me sad to think that I won’t be able to watch Xavi [in Europe] for more time. He’ll always have that level. He is football. He is one of those players that has made Barcelona what it is today”
Hristo Stoichkov (on Onda Cero radio), former Barcelona team-mate
“I remember that little lad, fresh-faced, just a kid, coming on at Valladolid and scoring a header – a header that saved that Dutchman’s [Louis van Gaal] neck. If we’re talking about Xavi, we’re talking about a legend in world football, a genuine legend. From the very first game to the very last game he has been the most decisive player at Barcelona, the player who has done more for Barcelona than anyone else, the player who has lifted more trophies than anyone else, ever. That’s Xavi Hernández. There will be a Before Xavi and an After Xavi. It’s not fair that he never won the Balon d’Or, but he was ‘unlucky’ to coincide with Messi. I am sure that one day he will end up coaching Barcelona. There will never be another player like him.”
Jorge Valdano, former Real Madrid coach If football was a science, Xavi would have discovered the formula. With a ball at his feet, no one else has ever communicated so intelligently with every player on the pitch”
Santi Cazorla, former Spain team-mate “There will never be a player like Xavi. I was fortunate to play with him and I learned something new every day. He’s a player that made the difficult look easy, simplifying everything”
Marcelino, scorer of the winner for Spain in the 1964 European Championship, their only international trophy until 2008 “Without doubt, the best midfielder there has been in world football over the last 30 years”
Julen Lopetegui, Porto manager, coach of Spain’s Under‑19s, Under-20s and then Under‑21s between 2010 and 2014 “Xavi changed football. He helped us to build, or to see, a new player profile that ended up running through all levels of the national team. He killed off the myth of physicality being above all else and opened people’s eyes to the qualities of small, technical players, proving that you can attack and also defend with the ball. There are lots of players who win things, but few who lay down concepts, ideas, who change the way we think, and Xavi did that. At club level, the idea already existed and he perfected it; at international level, he imposed it. Possession, the speed of pass. He made it simple, and that’s difficult. The intensity with which he played was vital and it showed that intensity is not what people often think it is. It’s the rhythm of the game, the speed and intensity of the play itself: quick, simple, constant. He made every other player better. He gave the right pass, he gave continuity and he was always well positioned”
Ander Herrera, Manchester United midfielder who scored for Spain Under-21s in the final of the 2011 European Championship “Xavi is unique; there won’t be another player like him. The style of Barcelona and the national team was forged through him”
Ronald Koeman (from Marca), former assistant manager at Barcelona, coinciding with Xavi’s arrival“Everyone knew when he was coming through the youth system that he was the successor to Guardiola, if Pep ever left. He had huge talent and you could see that from very young. Tactically, he was excellent. He has done so many good things for Barcelona that one day he has to return.”
Michu, former Spain team-mate “I was called up for Spain the day the national team qualified for the 2014 World Cup, against Georgia in Albacete, and I got changed next to him. He was really happy to have qualified but he said it would be his last World Cup. I told him that for the sake of those of us who love the game, he should never leave. It was an honour for me to share a dressing room with the best player in the history of Spanish football. If only he could stay for ever”
Fernando Torres (on Twitter), former Spain team-mate who scored in the Euro 2012 final “It is the end of an era for one of the greats, but we will never forget that you made us great.”
Sergio Ramos (on Twitter), fellow European Championship and World Cup winner with Spain “Football in its purest form.”
David Villa (on Twitter), former Spain team-mate and winner of 2010 World Cup ‘Silver Shoe’ with five goals “Your class and your football made us great.”

Joan Laporta, former Barcelona president “Xavi is the defender of the values of the greatest Barcelona team in history. He is the personification of a model based on effort and a commitment to touch and technique, that exquisite eye that Barcelona projected around the world”Carlos Marchena, team-mate at 1999 World Youth Championships, as well as Euro 2008 and 2010 World Cup “As a team-mate, Xavi stood out because of his approachability, solidarity, leadership and humility. His departure feels like the end of an era for me; he was the stamp of identity for a generation, the embodiment of a style. He represents a change of mentality, aims and ambition in Spanish football. He made it possible for Spain to throw off its complex and look other successful teams in the eyes. It is hard to say something new about him as a player, but he was a footballer who always made his team-mates better. Above all, I will remember him as a person. Xavi was always Xavi, the same Xavi he had always been”
Dani Aranzubia, goalkeeper in Spain’s 1999 World Youth Championship-winning team “I played with Xavi for Spain, and against him many times at club level. He was the creator of a style for Barcelona and Spain. Without him, so much success would not have been possible. He will go down in history as one of the true greats”
Míchel, former Real Madrid player, coach of clubs including Sevilla and Olympiakos “Xavi is not going to Qatar to end his football career but to begin another journey and to develop himself. He is one of the few footballers left who are truly interested in football in its purest sense and that’s why he wants to carry on helping the game, working in football. I am sure he will be a coach. It strikes me just how much respect everyone has for him and that is well deserved. He is a fundamental player, around whom a team gravitates. Everything revolves around him and will do even when he is not on the pitch, because the legacy he has left is so significant”
Guillermo Amor, Barcelona central midfielder for 10 years, then director of club’s youth system “Xavi represents the values of Barcelona on and off the pitch. He lives the game with passion and is a true Barcelonista. An example and a reference point for world football”
Gerard Piqué, former club team-mate who played alongside Xavi during Spain’s record 29-match unbeaten run “He signifies our way of playing, the culture of La Masía, everything. He is one of those emblematic players who have helped to make Barcelona even bigger”
Juan Manuel Asensi, former Barcelona player and Xavi’s first coach in youth system “It’s an honour to have coached that little lad who is such a great. There will never be another player like him”
Josep Maria Bartomeu (on RAC1 radio), Barcelona president “He’s the most important reference point this club has had. We told him: ‘If you’re going, you have to come back one day.’ He could be a scout, coach, technical director, because his concepts are very clear and we cannot lose talent like his.”
Cesc Fàbregas (on Radio Marca), former team-mate who joined Barcelona in 2011“One of the big mistakes people make is to talk about who can be the next Xavi, to keep looking for him. We waste time constantly looking for the replacement for Xavi? There will never be another Xavi.”
Carles Puyol (from El Mundo Deportivo), retired centre-back who refused to leave Barcelona in 1998 having seen best friend Xavi make his first-team debut “The motor, the style, the brain of one of the best Barcelona teams in history. I hope he comes back soon.”
Luis Milla, former Madrid and Barcelona midfielder and Spain Under-21s coach“It is a pity that he is going. When people look back on this age of success for Spain and Barcelona, he is the player who will come to mind. He is the profile, the player who lays down a style and has done so for a decade. Pause, vision, maturity, intelligence. Spain always had good players but we needed someone like Xavi, someone who gave it shape, order, someone at the controls, deciding on the flow and rhythm of the game. He brought a clear idea, one that was founded on having the ball. The midfield has been the secret for Spain and for Barcelona and he was the reference point”

Iñaki Sáez, coach of 1999 World Youth Championships winning team and later of senior Spanish national team “Xavi is values, leadership, trust, maturity, commitment, the desire to overcome. He is one of the most important players in the world over the last decades. His way of understanding the game helped make Spain champions. His vision, his perception, his idea contributed to Spain playing the kind of football that people fell in love with and built an unforgettable era of success”Xabi Alonso, played in every game alongside Xavi as Spain won the 2010 World Cup “Without doubt, Xavi is one of the most influential players there has been in football in recent years”
Johan Cruyff, Barcelona’s longest-serving coach, who won 11 trophies at the Camp Nou “If Xavi has a bad day then Barcelona do not play half as well. He is the one that sets the rhythm of the game. His play allows the team to function. He’s different”
Andoni Zubizarreta, Barcelona sporting director and former player “In an immense, globalised game like football has become, Xavi was still able to define an entire style, a way of playing and understanding football. From now on, whenever we see certain types of players we will look at them and say: ‘He plays like Xavi.’ Only the very greatest players can be said to have done that”
Andrés Iniesta, Barcelona midfield team-mate with whom Xavi shared a profound understanding “I have run out of eulogies. I cannot find words that reach his level as a player and a person. The years, the success, the feelings, the way he did things ... all of that is beyond words. He is a unique player who will never be repeated, fundamental for club and country. It has been a true pleasure and a privilege to have spent my entire career by his side”
Joseba Etxeberria (from Diario Vasco), former Spain international “If we analyse football as a collective sport he is the most influential player I have ever seen. Others can move their team, but I have only ever seen one player, and that’s him, who can move all 22 players on the pitch as he wishes, to his rhythm. For a player like Xavi not to have won the Ballon d’Or is an insult to football. If you want to stop him, you have to put two men on him. With one, it’s not enough. It’s unanimous: we don’t say this just because we like him. Ask anyone who has played against him and they will tell you the same thing.”
Vicente Del Bosque (in an article written in El Pais after Xavi left the national team), former Spain coach “Before the final in Kiev in 2002, Xavi was a little uncomfortable and he said to me: ‘Míster, I think this will be my last game. I think I should retire after the final.’ I said: ‘Look, Xavi, wait a bit. You’re in good shape to keep playing. Wait two more years. I feel bad that you think it’s time to go because there’s still a lot to be enjoyed.’ That final against Italy was an example of how a team should play. It was the best game we have played and Xavi was one of the outstanding players. When he was coming down the stairs after the game, I said: ‘You see?’
“They say a team plays like its midfield. Xavi was the representative of the national team for 70 of the 90 games I was in charge. Twelve games a year, two qualification campaigns for the World Cup, one for the European Championship and then the tournaments themselves. Xavi laid down a style for the national team and marked an era. He was an expert at moving the ball on with one or two touches but when he had to hold on to it, he did that too. When it came to dictating the pace of a game, studying matches, he was a maestro. Teams would drop deep and wait and he would always find the solution, patiently. In 10 minutes, he knew the team in front of him perfectly. He was a leader.
“People would say that Xavi chose the team; they said so to hurt us. Xavi never chose the team but we would debate about football. How could you not debate football with a player like Xavi? He would never hold back defending his view. Every coach has an image, a tactical starting point, in his mind. But the most important thing is the concept, the way you’re going to play and we talked about that a lot. Xavi is passionate about football and he represents a style that is not just Barcelona’s.

Éric Abidal (on Cadena Ser radio), retired defender who played with Xavi at Barcelona from 2007-13 I want to see him lift the European Cup: he deserves an ending like that. He is a monument to the club, emblematic.“His departure leaves an important void, but his legacy is more important still. His style has been passed down to the next generations. That’s why more players will come ... what happened at the World Cup meant that Xavi’s international career did not end as we would have liked. But that ending does not take anything away from everything he did for the national team.”
Pep Guardiola, former Barcelona manager, cited by Xavi as his role model, whom he replaced in the Catalans’ midfield “One of the very best is departing. I hope future players learn from him in the way that I learned from his love for the game. There wasn’t a single day went by when I didn’t see him enjoy it. There would be a friendly and he would play. When he was injured, he would play, or he would do everything to be back soon. He is the most amateur player I know, and at the same time the most professional player too, such is his love for football. When he is not playing football, he is watching football. He will become a coach I am sure. He is the best Catalan player in history, not just because of the titles he won but because of his love for the game. Training would be at 11am and at 10.40 he was already out there, kicking the ball around.”
Luis Enrique, current manager of Barcelona “His importance is beyond doubt. He has played more games than anyone else at Barcelona, in an era when staying at a club this big for so long is extremely difficult. He has won more titles than anyone else. Now he has the chance to try to win one more. He will leave here through the puerta grande, out the front door the right way. I am so pleased that he is able to leave like this. It would have felt a bit wrong if he had left last season and I am glad he can leave like this, in the way that I would have liked Víctor Valdés and Carles Puyol to have been able to as well. He deserves it.”
Joaquim Hernández, Xavi’s father ”He has lived football with great passion since he was little. He is a real professor of football. He watches games, reads about football, follows so many teams. He lives for football.”




QUOTES BY XAVI 




  • I think Barcelona and the Spanish national team have been good for soccer because there are a lot of teams that come up playing from the back: with the goalie, the defense, moving up a defender to midfield, playing attacking soccer. I think fans want to see that. They want to see beautiful soccer, a spectacle, and Barcelona does that.


  • In football, the result is an impostor. You can do things really, really well but not win. There's something greater than the result, more lasting - a legacy.


  • You pressure, you want possession, you want to attack. Some teams can't or don't pass the ball. What are you playing for? What's the point? That's not football. Combine, pass, play. That's football - for me, at least.


  • I don't actually watch many shows. I will either watch movies or football. I enjoy to watch games in the Premier League and will also watch movies a lot as well. That is how I relax.


  • I've no regrets at all, but I still think at times that I would have loved to play in England. You live football over there; it's a great culture. People respect you more; it's more difficult to find respect in Spain. There is more criticism here.


  • I spend the entire 90 minutes looking for space on the pitch. I'm always between the opposition's two holding midfielders and thinking, 'The defence is here, so I get the ball and I go there to where the space is.'



  • Like so many of the players, I started at La Masia at the age of 11. I can't ever imagine not playing for Barcelona, let alone not playing soccer for a career. I don't ever want to play anywhere else.



  • Ibiza is a popular vacation place for a lot of the players in Spain. If you go in the summer, there are some of the world's most famous movie and music stars, so nobody cares about soccer players.


  • There are a lot of teams that don't want to play, that only want to defend against Barcelona, and that makes it difficult. We're always looking for the open space. A lot of times we'll face six defenders and four midfielders.









Early life

Born in Terrassa, Barcelona, Catalonia, Xavi is a product of FC Barcelona's La Masia youth system, which he joined at the age of 11. His father, Joaquim, was a former player for Sabadell in the first division. Xavi made his way through the youth and reserve teams and was a key member of Josep Maria Gonzalvo's FC Barcelona B team that won promotion to the Second Division.
As a child, Xavi watched a lot of English football, and held midfielders John Barnes, Paul Gascoigne and Matt Le Tissier in high regard.



Club career

Barcelona

1998–2001

His progression through the teams earned him a first-team substitute appearance in a friendly match against Southampton on 12 May 1998 and he made his competitive debut on 18 August 1998 in the Super Cup final, in which he scored against RCD Mallorca. His début in La Liga came against Valencia CF on 3 October 1998 in a 3–1 victory for Barcelona. Initially featuring intermittently both for the reserve and senior teams, Xavi scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory over Real Valladolid when Barcelona were 10th in the league. Sustained impressive performance meant that he became a key member of Louis van Gaal's title-winning team. Xavi finished his debut season with 26 matches played and winning the Spanish League. He also was named 1999 La Liga Breakthrough Player of the Year. Xavi became Barcelona's principal playmaker after an injury to Pep Guardiola in the 1999–2000 season.

2001–2003

In these years FC Barcelona was on the verge of bankruptcy and struggling to keep its place in La Liga's elite. Playing in the midfield, but with more defensive role, Xavi made 20 assists and scored 7 goals in those two seasons. On 16 March 2002, Xavi scored his first goal in El Clásico.

2004–2008

Xavi was named the vice-captain in the 2004–05 season, in which he helped Barcelona win La Liga and the Spanish Supercup. He was named La Liga Spanish Player of the Year in 2005.
In the 2005–06 season, Xavi tore the ligaments in his left knee in training; he was out of action for four months, missing a part of the season, but returned in April and was on the substitutes bench for Barcelona's win in the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final. He also won La Liga and the Spanish Supercup again.

2008–09 season

"Xavi is a player who has the Barcelona DNA: someone who has the taste for good football, someone who is humble and someone who has loyalty to this club. From the first moment I saw him play, I knew he would become the brain behind Barcelona for many years to come."
—Former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola, September 2008.
After being named Player of the Tournament at Euro 2008, Xavi spoke to Bayern Munich about a transfer, but newly appointed Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola convinced him that he was too important to the club to be allowed to leave.
He was a main part of Barcelona's treble and scored the fourth goal in the 4–1 win in the 2009 Copa del Rey Final against Athletic Bilbao, with a free kick. In La Liga, among many games, one of the most significant is the 6–2 El Clásico victory vs Real Madrid on 2 May. He assisted 4 out of 6 goals (once to Puyol, once to Henry and twice to Messi). Xavi helped Barcelona win the 2009 Champions League Final versus Manchester United, which ended 2–0, assisting the second goal by crossing to Lionel Messi for his header. Prior to the match, Manchester United coach Alex Ferguson heaped praise on the much lauded central midfield combination of Xavi and Andrés Iniesta, stating; "I don't think Xavi and Iniesta have ever given the ball away in their lives. They get you on that carousel and they can leave you dizzy." Xavi was voted "UEFA Champions League best midfielder" for his contribution during Barcelona's victorious 2008–09 UEFA Champions League campaign. Xavi was La Liga's highest assisting player with 20 assists. He was also the highest assisting player in the Champions League with 7 assists. Xavi earned 29 assists overall that season.
Xavi was under contract to Barça until 2014 after extending his contract during the 2008–09 season. The new contract made him one of the club's biggest earners, with a salary of €7.5 million a year.

2009–10 season


Xavi in action for Barcelona in 2008.
During the 2009–10 season, journalists increasingly noted Xavi's contribution to the Barcelona team. For example:
"Quite simply the best midfielder of modern football. It could even be argued that Xavi and Matthäus are the two best in this position in history. World class for several years now, it is the past three seasons in particular where the 30-year-old has been untouchable. Xavi’s passing is up there with Michel Platini, he creates countless goals with genius through balls while virtually never relinquishing possession."
In the 2009–10 season, Xavi again topped the assists table and provided both the assists in Barcelona's 2–0 victory against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu. He was acclaimed the 2nd best player of Barcelona in a season-long voting as Barcelona won the league title with a record 99 points. On 3 June 2010, the Madrid-based newspaper Marca awarded Xavi third place in the annual Trofeo Alfredo di Stéfano award for the best player in La Liga, behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

2010–11 season

"Our model was imposed by [Johan] Cruyff; it's an Ajax model. It's all about rondos [piggy in the middle]. Rondo, rondo, rondo"
—Xavi speaking in 2011 about tiki-taka style of play introduced to the club by Dutch legend Johan Cruyff.
On 9 June 2010, Xavi signed a new 4-year contract with the club, which may be automatically renewed up to 30 June 2016 based on number of games played. On 29 November he scored his third goal against arch-rivals Real Madrid in a 5–0 home win. On 18 December he scored another goal against RCD Espanyol in a 1–5 win. In the Champions League, Xavi scored a valuable goal against English side Arsenal during a home match in the UEFA Champions League that saw Barcelona passing through to the quarter-finals with an assist by teammate David Villa.
He was one of the three finalists for the 2010 FIFA Ballon d'Or, alongside Barcelona teammates Lionel Messi and Andrés Iniesta. He finished third on the vote behind Messi and Iniesta. He narrowly defeated Messi to win Player of the Year designation from World Soccer Magazine.
On 2 January 2011, in a league match against Levante UD, Xavi made his 549th appearance for the club in all competitions, matching the record held by Migueli. Following this match Xavi is the player with most appearances with Barcelona of all time. On 28 May, Xavi was imperious in the 2011 UEFA Champions League Final at Wembley Stadium in London as Barcelona defeated Manchester United in the showpiece for the second time in three seasons, winning 3-1.

2011–12 season


Xavi playing for Barcelona in 2011
Xavi began the 2011–12 season in fine goalscoring form and seemed to grow in his influence of the team despite the long anticipated return of Cesc Fàbregas and the promotion of Thiago Alcântara to create added competition for places in Barça's attacking midfield positions.
On 18 December, in the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup Final in Yokohama, Japan, Barcelona won 4-0 against Santos as Xavi scored a goal and made an assist to Lionel Messi. After the ball was slightly behind him, Xavi brought the ball down with a cocked leg, effectively using his ankle to control it, before slipping a pass through to Messi, who scored the first goal.
Xavi scored the winning goal in the Group H game against Milan, a vital match for Barcelona's progression in the UEFA Champions League. In total, Xavi gave the best goalscoring return of his career in 2011/12 season with ten Liga goals, two in the Copa del Rey – which Barcelona won – and one in the FIFA Club World Cup final success.

2012–13 season

On 18 December 2012, it was announced that Barcelona renewed the contract of Xavi, extending it until 30 June 2016. Xavi scored a goal vs Real Madrid in the match that Barcelona won 3–2. Xavi was named into the FIFA World XI, along with teammates Dani Alves, Andrés Iniesta and Lionel Messi.

2013–14 season

On 16 January 2014, Xavi made his 700th appearance for the first team against Getafe CF in the Copa del Rey.

2014–15 season

In June 2014, it was announced that Xavi would be leaving the club. However, on 22 July, after talks with newly appointed manager and former teammate Luis Enrique, Xavi decided to stay at Camp Nou for one more season. He was also appointed as club captain. On 25 April 2015, Xavi made his 500th La Liga appearance and became the 8th player in the history to do so. On 4 June, a farewell tribute was held at Barcelona for Xavi with players, managers, friends and family paying tribute to him.
On 6 June 2015, Xavi appeared as a 78th-minute substitute for Andrés Iniesta to make his final appearance for Barcelona during the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final, as the club won its fifth European Cup by beating Juventus at Berlin's Olympiastadion. Xavi, as the club captain lifted the trophy.  This made Barcelona the first club in history to win the treble of domestic league, domestic cup and European Cup twice. Xavi, Iniesta, Lionel Messi, Gerard Piqué, Pedro Rodríguez, Sergio Busquets and Dani Alves are the only players to have been a part of both treble winning teams.

Al-Sadd

On 21 May 2015, Xavi announced that he would join Qatari club Al Sadd at the end of the season, on a three-year contract. According to his agent, the deal would involve him becoming an ambassador for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in the country, and also start his coaching qualifications. He made his debut for Al-Sadd in a 4–0 win over Mesaimeer on 13 September 2015, assisting in the team's first goal.

International career


Xavi playing for Spain.
He played for the nation at the 2000 Olympics, 2002 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2004, 2006 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2008, 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, 2010 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2012, 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

UEFA Euro 2008

Xavi was named Euro 2008's player of the tournament after Spain defeated Germany 1–0 in the final. Xavi was dominant in midfield where his metronomic passing and reading of the game was pivotal to Spain's success, in addition to making tackles, shaping attacks and driving Spain to their first silverware since the 1964 European Championships. Andy Roxburgh, head of UEFA's technical committee, said: "We have chosen Xavi because he epitomizes the Spanish style of play. He was influential in the whole possession, passing and penetrating kind of game that Spain played."
Xavi scored the first goal of Spain in the semi-final against Russia, which Spain won 0–3. In the final, he made a pass, rolled towards the German area, from which Fernando Torres scored the winning goal.

2010 World Cup

Xavi was named in Spain's squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, with Spain eventually winning their first World Cup. He provided the most number of accurate passes, 599 with a passing success rate of 91%, and he crossed the ball inside the 18-yard box more than any other player performing in the tournament. For example, in the final he made 57 accurate forward half passes. Xavi also covered a lot of distance on the pitch – 80.20 kilometres throughout the competitions, which average at approximately 11.5 kilometres per game. In the final he covered a distance of almost 15 kilometres.
During the round of 16 match against Portugal, Xavi provided a backheel pass in the 63rd minute to David Villa. Although Villa had his shot with his left foot blocked by Eduardo, he then put in the rebound with his right foot for the winning goal. Xavi crossed a corner out to the edge of the six-yard box in the semi-finals against Germany, where Puyol made a header into the top-right corner.

UEFA Euro 2012


Xavi (left) is tackled byItaly's Riccardo Montolivo in the Euro 2012 Final
Xavi played for Spain at Euro 2012, which Spain won by defeating Italy 4–0 in the final. Xavi attempted 136 passes (127 completed, 94% success rate) during Spain's 4–0 victory in the group stage match against the Republic of Ireland, more than any other player in a European Championship match. The previous record had been set by Ronald Koeman at 117 in Euro 1992 match between Holland and Denmark. Xavi and Iniesta made 229 passes in this match, more than the combined Irish 11 managed. "Pum, pum, pum, pum" was how Xavi described the rhythmic sound of the ball constantly moving between himself and his midfield partner.
With Xavi providing two assists in the final, one for Jordi Alba, and another one, like 4 years ago, for Fernando Torres, he became the first player to register assists in two European Championship finals. Spain's UEFA Euro 2012 victory made Xavi the most successful player in Spanish football history, a feat that he previously shared with Carles Puyol, who missed the entire tournament.

Retirement

On 5 August 2014, following the 2014 FIFA World Cup where Spain were eliminated at the group stage, Xavi announced his retirement from international football having made 133 appearances for the national side in a 14-year period. Spain's World Cup winning manager Vicente del Bosque paid tribute, stating that Xavi was 'a key part of the team's style of play' and 'he was more important to us than even the manager', and added 'We will miss him both on and off the pitch. He is a player who we hold in great esteem both personally and as a player. He is and always will be a person and a player who is greatly valued by the federation, the coaching staff and by myself.

Style of play

"I think I haven't changed at all to what I am now. I've been a passer since a young age. I liked passing with the rest of the players and my friends when we played football on the streets, in the main square, and at school. I think I was very similar to what people see in the stadium."
Xavi on his own style of play, November 2014.
The claim that Xavi is one of the best central midfielders of all-time relies largely on his ability to find and exploit space as a playmaker. As he said: "That's what I do: look for spaces. All day. I'm always looking".Finding space, he would appear for a team-mate to receive and then move the ball on, with his coach Pep Guardiola putting it: ‘I get the ball, I give the ball, I get the ball, I give the ball’.
Xavi's vision, pinpoint accurate passing and world class ball control allowed him to dictate the flow of play while rarely relinquishing possession, most notably displayed during Spain's 2010 World Cup victory where he had a 91% passing success rate for the tournament. His ability to control some matches has earned him the sobriquet, "The Puppet Master". A style introduced to the club by former coach Johan Cruyff, Barcelona president Sandro Rosell believed Xavi, together with Messi, Iniesta and Busquets, perfected the club's tiki-taka style of play.


Career statistics

Club

As of match played 14 September 2014
ClubSeasonLeagueCopa del ReyEuropeOtherTotal
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Barcelona B1997–98392–––392
1998–99180–––180
1999–200041–––41
Total613–––613
Barcelona1998–99171206011262
1999–20002404110100382
2000–012027090–362
2001–0235410160–524
2002–0329210141–443
2003–043646071–495
2004–053631080–453
2005–06160004020220
2006–07353728041546
2007–0835771121–549
2008–0935651143–5410
2009–103433212141537
2010–113136012210505
2011–12311072101315114
2012–133055011121487
2013–143035010120474
2014–1531230100–442
Total505587091731319576785
Al Sadd2015–1642–––42
Total42–––42
Career totals570637091731319583390

International

As of 13 June 2014.
National teamSeasonAppsGoals
Spain2000–0110
2001–0250
2002–0380
2003–0450
2004–0581
2005–06130
2006–0773
2007–08164
2008–09141
2009–10170
2010–1171
2011–12141
2012–13111
2013–1471
Total13313

Honours

Source

Barcelona

  • La Liga: 1998–99, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2014–15
  • Copa del Rey: 2008–09, 2011–12, 2014–15
  • Supercopa de España: 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013
  • UEFA Champions League: 2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2014–15
  • UEFA Super Cup: 2009, 2011
  • FIFA Club World Cup: 2009, 2011

International


Xavi and Spain captain Iker Casillas with the Euro 2012 trophy
  • FIFA World Cup: 2010
  • UEFA European Football Championship: 2008, 2012
  • Summer Olympics Silver Medal: 2000
  • FIFA Confederations Cup Silver Medal: 2013
  • FIFA World Youth Championship: 1999

Individual

  • World Soccer Player of the Year: 2010
  • UEFA Euro 2008 Player of the Tournament: 2008
  • UEFA Best Player in Europe Award Second place: 2011
  • FIFA Ballon d'Or Third place: 2010, 2011
  • Ballon d'Or Bronze Award: 2009
  • FIFA World Player of the Year Third place: 2009
  • UEFA Champions League Final Man of the Match: 2009
  • UEFA Club Midfielder of the Year: 2008–09
  • IFFHS World's Best Playmaker: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
  • La Liga Breakthrough Player of the Year: 1999
  • La Liga Spanish Player of the Year: 2005
  • La Liga Player of the Year: 2nd place 2010, 3rd place 2011
  • La Liga Midfielder of the Year: 2009, 2010, 2011.
  • FIFA World Cup Dream Team: 2010
  • UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament: 2008, 2012
  • FIFA/FIFPro World XI: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
  • UEFA Team of the Year: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
  • ESM Team of the Year: 2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12
  • FIFA Club World Cup Silver Ball: 2011
  • FIFA Club World Cup Bronze Ball: 2009
  • Globe Soccer Awards Player Career Award: 2013
  • UEFA Ultimate Team of the Year (published 2015)















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