Although Xavi Hernandez has had to face a lot of criticism and negativity during his time as the head coach at FC Barcelona, there would hardly be any fan who does not look fondly upon at his time as a player at the Catalan club.
Between 1998 and 2015, Xavi appeared in more than 750 matches for Barcelona. During this time, he won eight La Liga titles, three Copa del Rey titles, five Supercopa de Espanas, four UEFA Champions Leagues, two UEFA Super Cups, and two FIFA Club World Cups.
In the latter part of his Barcelona playing career, the former midfielder was also joined by the defender Gerard Pique, who both formed the best Barcelona teams in the history of the club. Thus, both these former players know one another and the club very well.
As already reported, the former defender appeared in an interview in which he opined on his favored successors for Xavi. As SPORT has reported, in this same interview, the Spaniard also shared the belief that Xavi will remain at the club after this season even though he himself has announced his departure:
“I don’t think Xavi’s decision is one hundred percent certain. Let’s see, I believe he will stay. I don’t talk to Xavi every day, but we have spoken several times.”
Further commenting on this possibility, Pique also claimed that whatever is in Xavi’s interest is also in the club’s interest: “I want the best for him because it will surely be the best for the club.”
Despite what Pique says, Xavi leaving Barcelona is still the most likely scenario going forward. However, the current head coach will be leaving a lot of good memories behind, especially with the two youngsters who have grown immensely from opportunities provided to them by Xavi, i.e. Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi.
Pique also praised these two players in this interview. Commenting on Yamal’s strengths, Pique said: “In one-on-one situations, I don’t think there’s another player who can do what Lamine does on the field”, and also described Cubarsi as “a tremendous talent.”
