Xavi Hernandez believes the now-resolved fall-out between Spain captain Iker Casillas and Coach Vicente del Bosque was ‘normal.’
Del Bosque dropped Casillas for Euro 2016, giving the gloves to David De Gea, and the veteran trainer, who has since resigned his post, and the experienced skipper had some bad blood as a result, but have since buried the hatchet.
“It’s normal what happened because everyone wants to play. I was surprised Vicente made it public, but I don’t know what happened because I’ve not been in the national team for two years,” Xavi told AS.
“But I’ve seen the picture [of Del Bosque and Casillas shaking hands] and that’s fixed it, as it should be. The embrace between them is a fair conclusion. Vicente can’t keep things inside, he has to speak directly. They’re two very smart people, they’ve always looked for what’s best for Spanish football.
“In the unnecessary tension generated by the Barca-Real Madrid war, they were two of the most important figures in fixing it.”
Pedro Rodriguez meanwhile vocalised his displeasure at not being part of La Roja’s starting XI for the tournament and Xavi weighed in on his ex-Barca teammate, and reflected on the end to his international career at World Cup 2014.
“Pedro said something as obvious as a cathedral, he didn’t say anything bad. I would think that if I didn’t play, like everyone who remained on the bench in the competition. He’s been an example when he’s played and when he hasn’t. He’s a gem of a person and he’s second-to-none on a human level. I’m sure he didn’t want to harm anything about the squad,” he said of the Chelsea winger.
“The only thing you can criticise him for is that he said it during the tournament, that he didn’t wait until the end. I think it was very unfair on Pedro, anyone on the bench would have said the same.
“I had tendonitis [at the World Cup]. Vicente didn’t put me in the second match. These things happen. In the third, when we were already eliminated, I spoke to him and asked not to play, because my Achilles was very sore. I would have played if there was something to play for. But there wasn’t, so that’s why I was wearing slippers on the bench.”
