FC Barcelona need a revitalized version of themselves in order to be competitive this season. They have already gone through the second half of 2023 with several frustrating encounters that have cost them a lot in La Liga. However, the Barcelona that emerges in 2024 aspires to be much better.
Besides just the addition of a new prodigy into the team, Xavi himself has also changed his stance. His caring and nurturing nature seems to have taken a backseat, and his more demanding persona will now be seen. For a team lacking character in decisive moments, that may exactly be what they need.
As highlighted by SPORT, Xavi’s first step to improve his team’s ability to compete is coming through his training sessions. Knowing that January will be a tough month filled with matches in different competitions, the Barcelona coach has given his team no breaks in training this time around.
With more demanding sessions, mainly focused on physical performance, Barcelona have had to train nonstop. Following their winter break, the team returned for training on Friday. The very next day, Barça once again trained on Saturday in front of 5,500 fans in the Johan Cruyff Stadium. They will now also return to training on Sunday as well.
The only decision left pending is whether or not Xavi appoints the team a day of rest on the 1st of January. So Monday remains the only question mark, as Tuesday’s training session is already decided. Then, right before traveling to face UD Las Palmas, Barcelona will conduct another training session after Xavi’s press conference.
His continued demand from his team to deliver excellence seems to be the right step moving forward. January will see Barcelona compete in the Spanish Super Cup, Copa Del Ray, and La Liga.
With zero margin of error left in the league, Barcelona can no longer make the mistakes they made in 2023. Everyone depends on the team to do better in 2024, and Xavi is trying to make sure of it.
