When he inherited the Barcelona team from Ronald Koeman a little less than a year and a half ago, many were skeptical that Xavi Hernandez would be able to get Barcelona back on the winning track.Coaching experience from Qatar’s Al Sadd is not exactly something that inspires confidence, but if anyone knows how to win wearing the Nou Camp shirt, it is the long-time captain and brains of the team. Joan Laporta believed in Xavi’s winning mentality and, it seems, hit the spot.The 43-year-old Catalan made a championship team out of a team without an iota of confidence left by Koeman. Although there is still plenty to play for in Primera Division, the current nine points advantage over Real Madrid hints at the return of the trophy to Barcelona. Certainly, the progress he made from November 6, 2021 to today is clearly noticeable. Real have been defeated twice this season, Atletico Madrid is 17 points behind, however, failure in Europe casts a shadow on the so far excellent domestic season.##NAJAVA_MECA_7079894##Barcelona were eliminated from the Champions League in competition with Bayern Munich and Inter, and was stopped in the Europa League by Manchester United. The fact that they are the best locally, but far from the competition internationally, means that Xavi is only halfway to his desired goal. Barcelona have had their ups and downs throughout history, but in the Lionel Messi era, the standards became the highest possible. The fans expect the team to win the Spanish championship year after year and fight for the European throne. The current season is the first “whole” campaign with the former captain in the role of coach, so he will be blamed for the defeats on the international stage.But Xavi tries to make up for it as much as possible at home. And, he’s doing well.Sunday’s duel with Valencia was the 50th league game in which Barcelona played under his command and the performance is worthy of praise: 37 wins, seven draws and six losses. The total number of points won is 118, which means Xavi surpassed his former mentor Pep Guardiola by one, but Luis Enrique remained unattainable with as many as 124 out of a possible 150 points in the first 50 Primera games as Barcelona coach.However, looking at the number of victories in the mentioned period, Xavi found himself in the Top 5 of the Spanish championship. He tied with Carlo Ancelotti, and ahead of him are Zinedine Zidane and Jose Mourinho with 39 each, lead by another former coach of Real Madrid, Miguel Munoz, whose team from the 60s of the last century won as many as 40 times in the first 50 games with him as a coach.🎙️ Xavi: “Barcelona is the most complicated club to coach. You win 1-0 at the Bernabéu and people are not convinced… If another team does that, it’s the national holiday. The fans want us to win with 70% possession.” pic.twitter.com/SlcAFm9LWh— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) March 4, 2023 There is still a lot of work ahead of Xavi to prove himself as a coach, but as someone who in his playing days was a world and two-time European champion, and won the Champions League four times and the Primera Division eight times, it seems that passing on the championship gene to his players going well.”I came prepared. My DNA hasn’t changed. The idea is still the same: To be protagonists, to hold the ball, to create chances and to have an intense Barcelona. We have to fix a lot of things. There will be tense moments, but we have to be united and to row in the same direction. All with the goal of Barca winning titles again,” said Xavi upon his return to the club.It seems to work as advertised.
