Tag: Barcelona

New York City FC dismisses Claims

New York City FC have dismissed claims that Barcelona superstar Xavi Hernandez is set to join the club in the summer on a free transfer.Xavi was widely expected to leave the Catalan club last summer, but he agreed a one-year extension to stay.

This has not been a great decision for the 35 year-old, as he has been featuring only rarely in Luis Enrique’s team. Compared with the last few seasons,Xavi has made only 23 appearances in all competitions. It is becoming clear that Luis Enrique favours the young midfielders like Sergio Busquets, as they represent the future of the club.

Xavi has been an incredible part of Barcelona since joining the club as a 11-year-old. He has been instrumental in the club going through the most successful spell in their history. At the time of Pep Guardiola’s appointment in 2008,Xavi was at the peak of his career. Guardiola utilised the midfielder’s passing ability and vision to form a team that went on to dominate world football. Even though the team was thought to be built around Lionel Messi, it was run by the brilliance ofXavi. Rumours have been going around thatXavi would be joining the likes of Frank Lampard and David Villa at New York City FC. This move may be in time for the 2016 MLS season. Continue reading New York City FC dismisses Claims

Xavi coming near to Retirement

Barcelona midfielder Xavi says that his playing days may be over sooner rather than later. The Spaniard was widely expected to leave Barcelona in the summer for a couple of years in the Middle East or MLS.

This did not happen after the 34-year-old decided to extend his spell at Barcelona, where he has been at since the start of his career. Xavi undoubtedly attained his peak at the age of 28 and this coincided with an impeccable spell for Barcelona. During a period of five years, this Catalan club played outstanding football and it was largely orchestrated byXavi.

Despite announcing his international retirement after the end of the World Cup 2014, it looks likeXavi may not be playing for much longer. Continue reading Xavi coming near to Retirement

Barcelona Wins 2-0 Against Ajax; Messi Scores Two Goals For His Team

Luis Enrique, the manger of Barcelona, considers Messi to be the best player ever seen by him.

Raul has the record of scoring the most number of goals in Champions League but Messi, by scoring two goals for his team in the match against Ajax has touched the record. The total number of goals Messi scored in this competition is now 71.

As Barcelona lost two matches consecutively they were under a lot of pressure and hence winning this match was very important for them. Though winning the match was not very difficult for Barcelona. Ajax performed well in the first half but Messi’s goal in the 36th minute of the game gave Barcelona the lead. He scored his second goal in the 76th minute of the game which demolished Ajax’s hope of making a comeback. At times it seemed that Messi would score a third goal in the match and thereby set a new record.

Barcelona had the ball in their possession for only 48% of the time. Frank de Boer, coach of the Ajax team regretted not getting a reward in spite of playing well. Luis Enrique thinks that the team can make improvements in certain areas of their game but he is satisfied nevertheless. Luis Suarez said that no other player in the world is as good as Messi and he considers playing alongside Messi to be a great honour.

Xavi Hernandez said that having Messi on the team gives them the edge over other teams.  He said that winning the match has elevated their level of confidence. Xavi considers that the team has performed well enough in the match and hence deserved to win. Xavi considers Ajax to be a tough opponent and he further added that it was hard for them to keep the ball in possession. Winning the match ensured Barcelona’s place in the knockout stage of the competition