Barcelona were recently named the most successful team of the century by the Spanish Research Centre of History and Statistics, beating Manchester United into second place. It is hard to argue with that claim, which is based on numerous statistical criteria. It is no coincidence that Xavi Hernandez has been at the heartbeat of the Barcelona midfield for the entirety of that decade. He has enjoyed some spectacular results since his full debut in 1998, but none of them is likely to eclipse Monday night's 5-0 win over Real Madrid, in which he played a sublime starring role. The foundation of Barca's victory was the unplayable passing of the midfield triumvirate, which Xavi commands with imperious authority. In this form he is impossible to dispossess, barely ever misses a pass and plays balls that 99.9% of players would not even see, let alone be able to pull off. Lionel Messi will continue to attract the plaudits for his dazzling skill and incision and will rightly go down in history as one of the greatest if not the greatest footballer of all time. Yet the beauty of Xavi's game is simplicity. If he wins the Ballon D'or / FIFA World Player of the Year award in January, it will be a monument to one of the most under-rated players in recent memory.
1 December 2010
Matchday 13 - Player of the Round
Xavi (Barcelona)
Barcelona were recently named the most successful team of the century by the Spanish Research Centre of History and Statistics, beating Manchester United into second place. It is hard to argue with that claim, which is based on numerous statistical criteria. It is no coincidence that Xavi Hernandez has been at the heartbeat of the Barcelona midfield for the entirety of that decade. He has enjoyed some spectacular results since his full debut in 1998, but none of them is likely to eclipse Monday night's 5-0 win over Real Madrid, in which he played a sublime starring role. The foundation of Barca's victory was the unplayable passing of the midfield triumvirate, which Xavi commands with imperious authority. In this form he is impossible to dispossess, barely ever misses a pass and plays balls that 99.9% of players would not even see, let alone be able to pull off. Lionel Messi will continue to attract the plaudits for his dazzling skill and incision and will rightly go down in history as one of the greatest if not the greatest footballer of all time. Yet the beauty of Xavi's game is simplicity. If he wins the Ballon D'or / FIFA World Player of the Year award in January, it will be a monument to one of the most under-rated players in recent memory.
Barcelona were recently named the most successful team of the century by the Spanish Research Centre of History and Statistics, beating Manchester United into second place. It is hard to argue with that claim, which is based on numerous statistical criteria. It is no coincidence that Xavi Hernandez has been at the heartbeat of the Barcelona midfield for the entirety of that decade. He has enjoyed some spectacular results since his full debut in 1998, but none of them is likely to eclipse Monday night's 5-0 win over Real Madrid, in which he played a sublime starring role. The foundation of Barca's victory was the unplayable passing of the midfield triumvirate, which Xavi commands with imperious authority. In this form he is impossible to dispossess, barely ever misses a pass and plays balls that 99.9% of players would not even see, let alone be able to pull off. Lionel Messi will continue to attract the plaudits for his dazzling skill and incision and will rightly go down in history as one of the greatest if not the greatest footballer of all time. Yet the beauty of Xavi's game is simplicity. If he wins the Ballon D'or / FIFA World Player of the Year award in January, it will be a monument to one of the most under-rated players in recent memory.
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