The name of Xavi Hernandez has been synonymous with the tiki-taka style of quick passing football espoused by Barcelona and the Spain national team. The 34-year-old Catalan’s decision to call time on a glorious international career marks the end of an era both for the man himself and his country.
Rightly described as one of the best central midfielders of his generation, Xavi’s excellence is founded on his vision and ability to find and exploit space, supplemented by precise and accurate passing and a degree of ball control that allows him to dictate the game and keep possession for his side. He has done all this for Spain against some of the finest opponents the world has had to offer.
Xavi made his full Spain debut against the Netherlands in 2000 at the age of 20, winning an Olympic silver medal the same year. His first international goal came five years later in a friendly against China in Salamanca.
Xavi was named player of the tournament following Spain’s 1-0 win over Germany in the Euro 2008 final in Vienna and set up the winning goal for Fernando Torres. His control of the midfield for Luis Aragones’ side was based on his metronomic passing and reading of the game that was so crucial to Spain’s success. He epitomised the Spanish style of play that was to underpin La Roja’s dominance of the world game under Vicente del Bosque.
Xavi was instrumental as Spain won the World Cup in 2010 and a second successive European Championship in 2012. With 133 games and 13 goals to his name, Spain’s most-capped outfield player has decided to call it a day following the disastrous World Cup campaign in Brazil that marked the end of La Roja’s all-conquering international reign.
Along with his teammates, Xavi looked a shadow of his former self as Spain collapsed to a 5-1 defeat against the Netherlands in their World Cup opener and never recovered. Fatigued and struggling with niggling injuries, Xavi admitted it was “the hardest loss of my sporting life” and played no further part in Brazil. His subsequent decision to quit playing for the national side comes as no surprise and might have happened earlier had Del Bosque not persuaded him to continue after Euro 2012.
As with his performances for Barcelona at the peak of his powers, Xavi’s statistics for Spain demonstrate both his accuracy and stamina. At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, he made more passes and he crossed the ball inside the 18-yard box more often than any other player in the tournament. He also covered a phenomenal amount of ground, approximately 11.5 kilometres per game and almost 15 kilometres in the final against the Netherlands.
Xavi attempted more passes (136 in all) in Spain’s 4-0 win over Ireland at Euro 2012, with a 94 per cent success rate. In tandem with Andres Iniesta, his partner in crime for both club and country, Xavi made 229 passes in the same game, more than the opposition players combined. His departure marks the changing of the guard but for any successor he will be an impossible act to follow.
