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JohnN
Senior Member
GOAT. Spain ain't winning no big trophies anytime soon without him.
And neither is BarcelonaLet's hope he's even a quarter as good as manager.
Thanks for the depression inducing video.
P.S.: Xavi was a mater.
Fati_Future_BallonDor
Well-known member
GOAT. Spain ain't winning no big trophies anytime soon without him.
And neither is Barcelona
according to some guys here he is overrated....thats why spain won nothing after his decline
Xaviniesta
Senior Member
GOAT. Spain ain't winning no big trophies anytime soon without him.
And neither is Barcelona
every precise pass, turn... just pure satisfaction
iniestaGOAT
Senior Member
Made a huge mistake not taking the job when Barto offered instead we had to suffer with koeman.
Nazario1985
Senior Member
according to some guys here he is overrated....thats why spain won nothing after his decline
Xavi is a legend but some folks here act like he is the second coming, Xavi is a master but no way near Iniesta, folks tend to forgot how he played when FCB was bad awaiting the Gaucho era.
He is an expectational player and top legends in midfield.
I always saw him as a player who will morph with the level of the team.
Bobo32
Senior Member
Xavi was WAY superior to Iniesta, but Iniesta would have an easier time getting through if he played for another top club, and could shine more clearly in a bad team.
In a sense I agree he will morph with the level of the team, but he also morphed his teams into a higher level than anyone else would be able to, when he got the teams to play his way.
He himself often said that he is very dependent on his team mates, and he also said that he always had been the same player, just the surroundings changed a lot.
iniestaGOAT
Senior Member
according to some guys here he is overrated....thats why spain won nothing after his decline
The golden generation all grew old and declined together.
Nazario1985
Senior Member
He didn't morph his team in his early 20's when they were playing bad in 2000- 2001 - 2002 - 2003 !!
Iniesta was a pure talent since his youth, and would have shined anywhere no matter the system.
Ronaldinho started the fire back then when they were all sleeping.
Again of course I'm not comparing him to Ronaldinho that would be unfair, but some folks think he is the best midfielder in all time is just absurd. Most of them only know him from youtube highlights
Messi / Iniesta are the irreplaceable folks from the golden era.
Bobo32
Senior Member
Yeah I think we agree roughly, it's a bit of a matter of taste what you prefer, but for me it is pretty clear.
What I mean is this: had Pep come in 2002 with the same kind of vision as in 2008, Xavi would be the best midfielder in the world back then already, and he would be crucial in making Peps team a success.
Instead they tried to get lucky with one name after another, and when they got Ronaldinho and Davids that spring it turned things around. Xavi was playing very well but pretty quietly then, as he did when Deco arrived the year later. He wasn't used to his fullest potential, but it was due to how the rest of the team was set up.
Iniesta looked more spectacular, and was even more hyped some of the time when the team struggled, but he was a pretty minor part in creating the GOAT team I say: Xavi, Messi, Busquets, Alves and maybe even Puyol were players I think comes above him in order of importance to that team. Iniesta played extremely well of course, and fitted perfectly, but replace him with Keita and you have a tweak to the team, replace Xavi with Keita and you lose a lot of the strength of the team.
Messigician
Senior Member
Ppl talking bullshit
No Iniesta no first treble simple as that
No Iniesta no first treble simple as that
Xaviniesta
Senior Member
who is the best midfielder of all time according to you?
serghei
Senior Member
Spain and Barca declined heavily when Xavi slowed down. Spain was never the same team even though Iniesta, Ramos, Pique, David Silva, these guys were still in their prime around the time Xavi started to fade, which was around 2013.He was the most important player IMO of that Barca and Spain team, was basically the engine and brain of that brand of football. More important than Messi, or Iniesta. They were vital in finishing teams off and in dribbling in the last third, but it was Xavi mostly that allowed us to control matches to that degree, he had the biggest influence in our positional possession game, with his non-stop movement, positional sense, and game intelligence.
Sounds like a cliche, but the guy really had an extra pair of eyes at the back of his head, he was unpressable because he kept popping in wherever there was any space available.
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Messigician
Senior Member
He was the most important player IMO of that Barca and Spain team, was basically the engine and brain of that brand of football. More important than Messi, or Iniesta. They were vital in finishing teams off and in dribbling in the last third, but it was Xavi mostly that allowed us to control matches to that degree, he had the biggest influence in our positional possession game, with his non-stop movement, positional sense, and game intelligence.
Sounds like a cliche, but the guy really had an extra pair of eyes at the back of his head, he was unpressable because he kept popping in wherever there was any space available.
He would genuinely still get a game for us lmfao
KingLeo10
Senior Member
Kind of agree there.
I think Messi is our best player ever and top 3 in football history (for me the best in his prime but the general consensus is top 3) BUT I think Xavi was probably the most important football player of the last 20 years. There was a point where this lad won a BIG trophy ever summer for 5 years straight (Euro, CL, WC, CL, Euro) and in this period of his prime, Barcelona and Spain were near unbeatable.
He basically set the standard for quick passing, passing accuracy, control of the tempo (an absolute master at this), press resistance, and yes, even pressing (used to average 12-13 KM a game in his prime). Basically, majority of what is good about Pep's brand of football, which is basically the football that MOST successful teams play these days (Klopp's Pool in their heyday, Flick's Bayern etc.) with physicality and modern conditioning sprinkled on top of it. RM CL 3-peat team is probably the only major exception but they just had a galaxy of stars and a particular strength (crossing -> aerial presence).
I think Messi is our best player ever and top 3 in football history (for me the best in his prime but the general consensus is top 3) BUT I think Xavi was probably the most important football player of the last 20 years. There was a point where this lad won a BIG trophy ever summer for 5 years straight (Euro, CL, WC, CL, Euro) and in this period of his prime, Barcelona and Spain were near unbeatable.
He basically set the standard for quick passing, passing accuracy, control of the tempo (an absolute master at this), press resistance, and yes, even pressing (used to average 12-13 KM a game in his prime). Basically, majority of what is good about Pep's brand of football, which is basically the football that MOST successful teams play these days (Klopp's Pool in their heyday, Flick's Bayern etc.) with physicality and modern conditioning sprinkled on top of it. RM CL 3-peat team is probably the only major exception but they just had a galaxy of stars and a particular strength (crossing -> aerial presence).
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