Barcelona News: The veteran Barcelona midfielder has come up with words of praise for manager Xavi Hernandez
Barcelona News: Barcelona player Sergio Busquets feels his former teammate and current manager Xavi Hernandez has transformed the Blaugrana into a more “complete” unit under his guidance.
Catalan football has improved dramatically under Xavi, after a slow start. The team has been in amazing form recently. The club did savvy business during the winter transfer window. They signed sign Dani Alves, Ferran Torres, Adama Traore (on loan), and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. This has greatly aided the team’s progress.
Busquets, who has been a constant member of Barcelona’s starting XI since Xavi’s debut, spoke to Mundo Deportivo (via Barca Blaugranes) about his feelings over Xavi’s departure:
“Our staff is considerably more complete now. We do a great deal more things well. We are much more cohesive as a result. Clearly, we have a long way to go. But this is the path we should be on.”
The defensive midfielder from Spain went on to say:
“Everything is different this time. Self-esteem, state of mind, and confidence are all important. A new coach has arrived. He has made a number of significant adjustments. Xavi shared his ideology, which he had followed for many years.”
Barcelona has gone undefeated in their last ten matches across all competitions. A stretch that is extended to 12 games when just La Liga matches are taken into consideration. In doing so, they were able to advance to the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 and move up to third in the league standings.
In their previous ten games, Barcelona has scored 24 goals and surrendered nine goals.
It will be a litmus test for Xavi’s confident Barcelona team in this year’s El Clasico
Away against La Liga leaders Real Madrid on Sunday, the Blaugrana will be looking to continue their unbeaten stretch of games.
Los Blancos are also in excellent form. They have recently defeated Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League despite falling down by two goals on aggregate. In addition, Carlo Ancelotti’s team won 3-0 over RCD Mallorca in their most recent league encounter to go 10 points ahead at the top of the table after 28 games played.
Accordingly, Barcelona will almost certainly face a major challenge in the last Clasico of the season. They have lost their past four meetings with Real Madrid. Barca will be up against a formidable opponent when they go to the Santiago Bernabeu this weekend.
The Catalans will be focused, though, on earning a spot in the Europa League quarterfinals before they can think about anything else. As part of their Round of 16 tie against Galatasaray, they have flown to Istanbul to face the Turkish club. The first leg at Camp Nou ended in a 0-0 draw, putting the tie in an equal state of play.
Barcelona is getting back to results with some stunning displays on the field. The credit has to go to Xavi Hernandez. He is making a significant shift in Barcelona’s gameplay. Time will tell whether they finish the weekend on a high or not.
