Xavi Hernández

[BerkeleyBernie]

Lazy Messi once again.

Honestly, I'm starting to think it has to do with his vomiting condition. He seems to have a problem with exertion, so tries to manage it during games, regaining his equilibrium before exerting again.

 

[DonAK]

Xavi on his phone.....

* Credit to Barcasstuff(Barcastuff parody account on twitter)

 

[BarcaOG]

second game in a row that xavi's substitution positively changed the game in barca's favour

 

[DonAndres]

Ironic how in december it was Xavi's subbing on that won us the match, while this time it was him being subbed off

Both times vs Villarreal

 

[Armando929]

Yeah its time Cesc steps in for Xavi. We love Xavi and all but its time for him to take a supporting role.

 

[Paganinisrvnge]

Xavi will go down as one of if not the greatest midfielder ever but his best days are behind him and have been for some time now. Whoever our coach is next season needs to have the balls to use him in a supporting role.

 

[Sumlit]

Damn was Xavi poor today. It's hard to watch such a great player down on his last leg and struggling so much.

 

[Stric]

Xavi on his phone.....

* Credit to Barcasstuff(Barcastuff parody account on twitter)

This is brilliant.

 

[BerkeleyBernie]

Everyone here drawing the wrong conclusion about the late turnaround (which I predicted at half-time- BECAUSE of how the team was playing, not in spite of it). Xavi played great, pressure kept on Villarreal all game by the entire team, finally cracking under pressure late in the game. This has been classic Barça/Spain for years against deep defending. The besieged team can only hold on for so long, and as soon as fresh legs are brought in (not to mention a superior bench), the pressure increases, and the cracks emerge.

People act as if Xavi is the sole player on the team who can start an attack. If Xavi doesn't start an attack, there is nothing preventing the next player to try. So Cesc is superior to Messi and Iniesta in attacking because they didn't score/assist in the first 60 minutes? Bad logic. Xavi tried plenty of passes inside, Messi and Iniesta both tried to penetrate as well, and they encountered a wall of yellow. Just the nature of parked bus defending.

Cesc much better as super-sub, when he has the space and time to breathe. Xavi much better to start games, where Cesc mistakes under pressure lead to more counterattacks.

 

[Paganinisrvnge]

Dude...Xavi was a genius in his prime but now he gets destroyed on defense by any decent attacker and doesn't have the killer passing as often. Also, he gets bullied off the ball a lot more easily than in his prime. Prime Xavi held onto the ball as well as Messi. He needs to be a bench player next season brought on to provide possession when we already have a lead.

 

[CatalinR10]

Xavi: "We wanted to dedicate this win to Tito, we worked hard for it. This is for his family."

Xavi: "It was very difficult to play today, we didn't feel good. The club lost a reference point, Tito will always be an example."

 

[evilhita666]

I think he should have done better in their first goal, while it was a collective mistake, he didn't track back fast enough, but that is not news...

 

[BerkeleyBernie]

Dude...Xavi was a genius in his prime but now he gets destroyed on defense by any decent attacker and doesn't have the killer passing as often. Also, he gets bullied off the ball a lot more easily than in his prime. Prime Xavi held onto the ball as well as Messi. He needs to be a bench player next season brought on to provide possession when we already have a lead.

LOL whatchu on about? This is a bunch of repeated blahdeeblah soundbites- show me where he didn't hold the ball, got bullied, got destroyed today (or in any recent game, to be honest). Plenty of attacking passes today, and created the best pass of the game in the previous two games. What you CAN say:

1) it's hard to create against parked buses, no matter who the player is. Messi is one of the best in the world at both dribbling and passing- what did he do in the first 60 minutes? He tried, just like everyone else on the team, including Xavi.
2) Barça sucks, and has always sucked, at defending territorially, because of the style of play. The defense is built on possession, pressing, and positioning- NOT on a flat back four, 1v1 speed race, or hard tackles. If you say Xavi "gets destroyed" on the counterattack, you might as well say the same about Iniesta, Busquets, and Cesc. Adriano, Mascherano, Alba, Pedro, and Sanchez are the only ones who can really keep up on a counterattack.

I'd have been fine with Thiago taking more time from Xavi as he gets older- unfortunately, that ship has sailed. But as long as it's a choice of Cesc/Xavi- Xavi to start, every time, as long as he's fit. Maintain the Barça control for the first 60 minutes, then Cesc on when the opponent has tired legs and Cesc has more time and space to work his stuff and is less liable to make a crucial turnover.

 

[Sumlit]

LOL whatchu on about? This is a bunch of repeated blahdeeblah soundbites- show me where he didn't hold the ball, got bullied, got destroyed today (or in any recent game, to be honest). Plenty of attacking passes today, and created the best pass of the game in the previous two games. What you CAN say:

1) it's hard to create against parked buses, no matter who the player is. Messi is one of the best in the world at both dribbling and passing- what did he do in the first 60 minutes? He tried, just like everyone else on the team, including Xavi.
2) Barça sucks, and has always sucked, at defending territorially, because of the style of play. The defense is built on possession, pressing, and positioning- NOT on a flat back four, 1v1 speed race, or hard tackles. If you say Xavi "gets destroyed" on the counterattack, you might as well say the same about Iniesta, Busquets, and Cesc. Adriano, Mascherano, Alba, Pedro, and Sanchez are the only ones who can really keep up on a counterattack.

I'd have been fine with Thiago taking more time from Xavi as he gets older- unfortunately, that ship has sailed. But as long as it's a choice of Cesc/Xavi- Xavi to start, every time, as long as he's fit. Maintain the Barça control for the first 60 minutes, then Cesc on when the opponent has tired legs and Cesc has more time and space to work his stuff and is less liable to make a crucial turnover.

According to Whoscored.com Xavi only touched the ball 63 times and had a passing success of 88%. For context, Alves had 146 touches, Iniesta 108 and Adriano 104. In fact, only Bartra and Pinto touched the ball less of all the starters.

Xavi's 88% pass success was also the lowest of all starters save again Bartra and Pinto. Pedro's 84% was lower also.

Xavi completed only 58 passes in the game.

So yes, Xavi was really poor today.

 

[BerkeleyBernie]

According to Whoscored.com Xavi only touched the ball 63 times and had a passing success of 88%. For context, Alves had 146 touches, Iniesta 108 and Adriano 104. In fact, only Bartra and Pinto touched the ball less of all the starters.

Xavi's 88% pass success was also the lowest of all starters save again Bartra and Pinto. Pedro's 84% was lower also.

Xavi completed only 58 passes in the game.

So yes, Xavi was really poor today.

Achh, you stat boyz, you ist vurse than frat boyz. Look at the 7 passes he did not complete: 2 long balls, and 3 on the edge of the opponent box trying to work to penetrate the bus.

As far as number of passes, Messi was much more involved today, nearly double the passes he made in the Bilbao game, which is great. His added movement meant Xavi had less of a burden as a pivot, and the ball stayed up front more, unless it absolutely had to be moved back to safety. When Xavi has the most passes, it means players don't have other options; he's the safety valve.

Performance is a matter of how one plays and supports the team, not stats. I saw nothing "poor" about Xavi's performance.