Xavi

Xavi, June 2012

Xavier Hernández i Creus (born 25 January 1980 in Terrassa, province of Barcelona), Xavi Player name [ ʃaβi ], is a Spanish footballer. His position is central midfield. He's been playing his youth at FC Barcelona.

With his club he was seven times Spanish champion and won three times the Champions League. 2008 and 2012 he was with the Spanish national team European champion and 2010 World Champion. Xavi is the player with most European Cup inserts and most competitive match inserts in the history of FC Barcelona.

Career

Association

Xavi plays since the age of eleven at FC Barcelona. In 1997 he joined the youth team of FC Barcelona in the second team. He quickly became a key player in the reserve team of Barcelona and was with the team in 1998 third league champion.

His first competitive match for the first team, he completed the Spanish Super Cup in 1998 against RCD Mallorca. In his first season, 1998/99, when the A- team of FC Barcelona, ​​he won the Spanish championship with his team. His league debut for Barcelona he gave on October 3, 1998, a 3-1 away win against Valencia. Xavi was in the following years, a fixture in Barcelona and played in almost every competitive game with. He took over the role of Josep Guardiola as a playmaker at FC Barcelona, and is mainly used in central midfield.

In the 2004/05 season he was selected by the coaches División of the Spanish league for the best Spanish players in the Primera. In December 2005, Xavi suffered a torn ACL and was for half a year. On 30 April 2006, he made ​​his comeback against FC Cadiz. Also in the 2006/07 season he was achievers at FC Barcelona and played 42 appearances for the club. Yet was this untitled disappointing season for him. In the subsequent season, Xavi won, even though he had scored as many goals as never before (seven) in the league, also no title at club level.

Under Pep Guardiola as the new coach, who replaced Frank Rijkaard to the 2008/09 season, Xavi played the best season of his club career. First, Barcelona won this season's Spanish Cup with a 4-1 victory over Athletic Bilbao in which Xavi scored the last goal in a free kick. The Spanish league is won little later on dominant manner with 105 goals scored. Historically, even the 6-2 success at Real Madrid, Barça's matchday 34 this season. Xavi prepared in this game four of the six goals. On 27 May 2009, finally made ​​Barcelona with a 2-0 victory over Manchester United in the Champions League final 2009 Triple - profit perfect. In this Champions League season Xavi was named the best midfielder of the competition, among other things, he had prepared Messi 2-0 in the final. The end of 2009 Barcelona won the UEFA Super Cup, in addition, the Supercopa de España and the FIFA Club World Cup, thus, Barça won the first team world all six possible trophies in one year.

The end of 2008 extended Xavi his contract for another four years until 2014. The contract includes a fixed transfer fee of 80 million euros. His contract was extended, as a result, it is automatically extended by two years until 2016, when Xavi in the last two seasons of his current contract regularly at least half of the games denies On June 9, 2010. Xavi Barcelona successfully defended in 2010 with the Spanish championship. 2-0 victory in El Clasico at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on Matchday 31 Xavi set up both goals. Xavi came in 34 out of 38 league games for use and played at the end of the season even despite a calf injury. On 2 January 2011, he completed his 549th game for Barça and placed so that the previous record of the defender Miguel Bernardo Bianquetti one that was in the 1970s and 1980s for Barcelona in use. In January 2013, Xavi extended his contract with FC Barcelona until the summer of 2016.

On November 6, 2013, the Barcelona succeeded with the 80th victory in the UEFA Champions League which he is the sole record holder. He previously shared the record of 79 wins with his compatriot Raul.

National

Since 1998, Xavi plays regularly for the Catalan football team.

In April 1999, Xavi became world champion at the Junior World Cup with Spain in Nigeria.

On 15 November 2000 he played against the Netherlands (2-1) his first game for the Spanish national team. Xavi was at the 2002 World Cup and at Euro 2004, the Spanish squad. Its use at the 2006 World Cup in Germany was questionable. To Xavis status in the Spanish national team said, his coach Luis Aragones before the 2006 World Cup the following: "Some people say it's a lottery Xavi to call in the World Cup squad, but I say, we would still more gamble, if we were to leave home without it. " Xavi presented at the World Championships as top performers of the Spaniards and was in the first group game against Ukraine voted" player of the Game ".

In 2008, Xavi was able to win the 2008 European football championships in Austria and Switzerland with the Spanish national team and was voted the best player of the tournament. In the final of this tournament again it was Xavi, who gave the victory Goal Scorer Fernando Torres the decisive pass to make it 1-0.

In the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, he was in all seven games in the starting lineup and played only in the group game against Honduras does not have the full duration. On 11 July 2010 he won with Spain to a 1-0 playoff victory in extra time over the Netherlands the World Cup.

On 25 March 2011 he was 2-1 against the Czech Republic as the second Spanish outfield player Raúl his 100th game.

In the qualification for Euro 2012, World Champion Spain qualified confidently with 26:6 gates and eight wins in eight games. Xavi had met twice. National coach Vicente del Bosque was phased with a 4 -6- 0 formation play, so no real striker and with very attacking midfielders. In this list Xavi took the role of an attacking force, the forward thrusting players supplied as usual with templates. Spain became the first team ever to defend the title of European Champion title.

At the Confederations Cup in 2013, he reached with Spain for the first time the finals, where they lost to hosts Brazil to a record group of 29 competitive games without defeat.

Playing style and skills

Xavi plays mainly in central midfield, where his strengths as game intelligence, ball security, fit and overview best come to fruition. He can also take a more defensive position whereby it can determine the pace of the game. Its weaknesses include the heading ability and lack of scoring prowess. He himself says about it: "I would have to score more goals. But when I get to the box, I decide almost always for a pass and not a goal. "

His father Joaquim was also active in the football field, playing up to his 37th year of life at unterklassigen team and founded in Xavis hometown a football school, then attended Xavi. His father then said of him: " All the guys wanted to storm out ahead and even score a goal - with the exception of Xavi. The supplied the Zuspiele from the second row and stopped counterattacks already far ahead. "

Achievements

  • Spanish Champion: 1999, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013
  • Spanish Cup: 2009, 2012
  • Spanish Super Cup: 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013
  • UEFA Champions League: 2006, 2009, 2011
  • UEFA Super Cup: 2009, 2011
  • FIFA Club World Cup: 2009, 2011
  • World Champion: 2010
  • European Champions: 2008, 2012
  • Silver medal at the Summer Olympic Games 2000
  • Third at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
  • Second in the Confederations Cup 2013
  • World Cup Participation: 2002 (3 inserts), 2006 (4 inserts ), 2010 ( 7 Missions )
  • European Championships: 2004 (no use ), 2008 (5 inserts / 1 goal), 2012 ( 6 inserts)
  • U- 20 World Cup: 1999
  • Best young player of Spain, according to El País: 1999
  • Best Spanish player of La Liga: 2005
  • Player of the tournament at Euro 2008
  • All-Star Team: European Championship 2008, World Cup 2010, Euro 2012
  • UEFA Midfielder of the Year: 2009
  • UEFA Team of the Year: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
  • IFFHS World's best playmaker: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
  • FIFA / FIFPro World XI: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
  • Player of the year, according to World Soccer: 2010
  • Best original donor of the UEFA Champions League: 2009
  • 3rd place in the election for FIFA World Player of the Year: 2009, 2010, 2011.
  • Prince of Asturias Award (Sport) in 2012, along with Iker Casillas
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