Xavi reveals his coaching idol and proposes 'strange' change in football

03 nov 2018

About to close his career in Qatar, Xavi is already working for a brilliant career as a coach. The characteristics are all there. Who more than the architect of Guardiola's Barcelona could be the right man for the job? The midfielder spoke in an interview on Catalunya Radio about current football and his ideas about the game.

"I do not like football on TV. There are many teams that speculate, it is played in a monotonous way. I cannot stand those who line up with a 4-5-1 and renounce possession of the ball," he said.

"I have clear ideas, my team will have to be the protagonist of the game, keep the ball, propose the ideas. I learned this with Barcelona and Spain. I like the Bilbao of Berizzo and the Betis of Setien, but of course, my role model is always Guardiola. I study all the matches of his Manchester City.

"I myself define this idea as 'strange', but the ideal way to play football would be ten against ten. I have seen matches between two teams with one sending off on each side and I have noticed how radically different it is. There are more spaces and you can play more in the attack," Xavi concluded.