A victory over CA Osasuna brings with it a great deal of motivation and a boost to Xavi and Barcelona moving forward. La Blaugrana are now undoubtedly in better spirits as they head on over to their next fixture. However, beating Osasuna took more than just a few hits to Barcelona as they managed to win 2-0.
Instead, the game already provided Barcelona with a new casualty to worry about before the half-time whistle. Barcelona ended up seeing Brazilian winger Raphinha go down on the ground as he clutched his legs.
Worrying signs like these are often problematic, and have led to many injury concerns in the past as well. Speaking to the media after the game, Barcelona head coach Xavi finally gave an official update on Raphinha’s injury:
“Raphinha has hamstring discomfort.”
However, that was not all the Barcelona coach discussed in his press conference. He was also asked to comment on Pedri’s return to the team and how it impacted the game:
“When Pedri came on, everything became clearer. He doesn’t lose possession, and he generates superiority.”
Beyond just praise for his young Golden Boy winner, Xavi also stated that the youngster feels more than ready to even start against Real Madrid:
“Pedri is ready to start in El Clasico, he’s fine. I talked to him and he’s ready, yes.”
Staying on the topic of his own players, Xavi even acknowledged Lamine Yamal’s abilities. Following his substitution, everything seemed to click for Barcelona, and the youngster was at the heart of a lot of it.
“We’re satisfied because we played a good match, Pedri and Lamine were good when they came on.”
He further elaborated on what exactly makes the 16-year-old La Masia prodigy such an immense talent:
“Lamine, with the ball, is amazing. He practically doesn’t lose the ball, and he goes into every duel. Even apart from the goal, he was very good. He’s an extraordinary talent.”
Another key topic he was asked to comment on was Carlo Ancelotti and Real Madrid, their opponents for the final. Referring to their first match this season at the Montjuic Stadium, Xavi believes that Barcelona have the ability to dominate their arch-rivals:
“I think that in the La Liga Clasico, we dominated much of the game. I can compare it to last season’s final. I think that we can dominate them and win.”
That ‘final’ that he is referring to was the Spanish Super Cup final of 2023. A major victory for Barcelona, it was both a great boost for the rest of the season and also arguably showed Xavi’s Barcelona at their best.
“Last season’s final was probably the best match since I have been here. This year, they are better, but we will not change anything. We are very motivated.”
Analyzing his opponents up ahead, Xavi gave an idea of his own concepts and even attempted to read through Ancelotti’s current setup:
“This season, Ancelotti has changed the system. They’re playing with sort of a 4-4-2 rhombus formation with a false 9. That will be the key for the match, but we’ll prepare for it and try to beat them. We’re going to play offensively and attack the spaces.”
Lastly, to finish off his press conference, the coach even left a sly remark for those targeting the fact that Barcelona seem to be incapable of winning by more than one goal: “We’ve won by more than one goal now. You have no more news.”
