Xavi recalled how Lionel Messi dribbled past Barcelona’s best defenders in training.© AFP
A day after Lionel Messi announced his retirement, Barcelona legend and former head coach Xavi Hernandez opened up about his years alongside the Argentine, calling him the greatest player of all time and sharing new details of talks to reunite with him at Barcelona. Xavi, in a podcast with Prakhar Gupta, said he first saw Messi train at 16, in the same touring squad, and immediately recognised something different. “From day one” he could tell Messi was a genius, he said, recalling how the teenager dribbled past Barcelona’s best defenders in training as though it were routine.
Comparing him to Cristiano Ronaldo, Xavi argued that while Ronaldo is an elite goalscorer, Messi’s understanding of the game, his ability to play as a six, an eight or a false nine, and to read space better than anyone sets him apart as football’s greatest ever player.
The former Barcelona coach also disclosed that he spent roughly four months in talks to bring Messi back to the club in what he described as a potential “last dance,” with both player and coaching staff enthusiastic about the reunion.
On Messi’s mentality, Xavi described him as a relentless competitor who kept pushing to win more even after achieving nearly every honour in the game. Reflecting on the retirement announcement, Xavi said he believed Messi was at peace with the decision, having “won everything” there was to win.
Xavi also drew a direct line between Messi and Barcelona’s current teenage sensation, Lamine Yamal, whom he first watched at 15 and believes has the tools to become the best player of his generation with Messi, he said, as his obvious mirror.
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