Xavi Hernandez is the latest Barcelona player to leap to the defence of Neymar following accusations he falls over far too easily.
In fact, the Spanish international believes he knows exactly where the finger pointing is instigated.
“This is happening because we have a lot of rivals and in Madrid they are looking for things they do not like and putting labels on them.
“All the focus is on Neymar but he is not an actor,” asserted Xavi in an interview with RAC-1.
The veteran midfielder, 34, maintains Barcelona will continue to dominate with their style of play in the coming years and considers he still has ‘two or three’ more years at the top level.
“We have a fantastic base with seven or eight young players who are important to this team. If we keep this base then we have a fantastic future.
“Barca will carry on winning and playing well without me. They should not be looking for a direct replacement as nobody is indispensable.
“Besides, it would be added pressure for somebody else,” explained Xavi, who also praised the work done so far by boss Tata Martino.
“He didn’t come to the Camp Nou to change anything and has always made it clear he wants us to play with our own style.”
