XAVI TO BE NAMED FC BARCELONA COACH
Xavi will today, Sunday January 12, 2020 be announced as FC Barcelona’s new manager.
The retired Spanish professional footballer played over 700 matches, scoring 85 goals.
Xavi is the first player in the Barcelona to play 150 European and FIFA Club World Cup matches combined.
With Barcelona, Xavi won eight La Liga titles and four UEFA Champions League titles. He has won 31 trophies for Barcelona and Spain, a total only surpassed by Andrés Iniesta as the most decorated Spanish player in history.
Xavi came third in the 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year, followed by third place for its successor award, the FIFA Ballon d’Or, in 2010 and 2011.
In 2011, he was runner up to Lionel Messi for the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award.
With Spain, Xavi won the FIFA World Youth Championship in 1999, and the Olympic silver medal at the 2000 Olympics. After making his senior team debut in 2000, he was capped 133 times for the Spain national team, and was an influential figure in the team’s successes.
He played an integral role in Spain’s victory at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, as well as their wins at both UEFA Euro 2008 and UEFA Euro 2012. He was named Player of the Tournament at UEFA Euro 2008, and was named in the UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament in 2008 and 2012.
At UEFA Euro 2012, with his two assists in the final, Xavi became the first player to register assists in two separate UEFA Euro finals, having set up the only goal in the final four years earlier. He had a 91% passing success rate at the 2010 FIFA World Cup and was named in the World Cup All-Star Team. After the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Xavi announced his retirement from international football and is currently the manager of Qatar Stars League football club, Al Sadd.