Xavi\u2019s time at Barcelona<\/a> was shaped heavily by financial constraints.\u00a0<\/p>\nDespite his ambitions to rebuild the squad with proven winners, the club\u2019s economic reality often limited what could actually be achieved.<\/p>\n
He began by revealing just how ambitious his plans were, particularly when it came to bringing back former stars.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAs Barcelona manager, I brought back Dani Alves and tried to bring Neymar, Pedro and Messi back as well.<\/p>\n
He then explained why those moves never materialised, pointing directly to the club\u2019s financial struggles.<\/p>\n
\u201cPedro and Neymar couldn\u2019t be signed because of the economic situation.\u201c<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/elche-fc-v-fc-barcelona-la-liga-1024x775.jpg\")
Xavi wanted to sign Messi and Neymar. (Photo by Manuel Queimadelos Alonso\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
The most surprising revelation, however, concerned Messi.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Xavi disclosed that a return for the Argentine was not only explored but actively worked on for months before being stopped at the highest level.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs for Messi, the president didn\u2019t want him back. We tried to sign Messi in 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe talked for 5 months, and everything was ready, but in the end, the president said NO.\u201d<\/p>\n
Relationship with Messi and Neymar<\/p>\n
Xavi also revisited the idea of signing Neymar, admitting that while it was a genuine possibility in theory, the financial situation made it unrealistic.<\/p>\n
\u201cPerhaps I could have coached Neymar at Barcelona, but our economic situation was so bad that his signing was never an option.\u201d<\/p>\n
He went on to highlight Neymar\u2019s extraordinary early years at the club, placing them just behind Messi\u2019s brilliance.<\/p>\n
\u201cNeymar\u2019s first years at Barcelona were the closest I ever saw someone get close to Leo Messi.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shifting focus to his personal relationship with Messi, Xavi shared an anecdote that perfectly captures the Argentine\u2019s demanding nature on the pitch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Xavi explained how Messi constantly sought involvement in every phase of play.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes Messi would get annoyed with me if I passed the ball to other players.<\/p>\n
He\u2019d come to me: \u2018Hey, hey! What are you doing? Pass the ball to me! Get closer, play with me!<\/p>\n
He also recalled his first impression of Messi as a teenager, describing the moment that convinced him he was witnessing something extraordinary.<\/p>\n
\u201cI first saw Messi when he was 16 years old. They told me there was an incredible kid from Argentina.<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw him and said: \u2018This is something different. I have never seen this before.\u201d<\/p>\n
Xavi also emphasised the personal bond they share. \u201cHe was a good kid. He\u2019s one of the best mates you can have in football.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a really good relationship with Leo Messi, it\u2019s based on trust.\u201d<\/p>\n
Praise for Lamine Yamal<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/fc-barcelona-v-ssc-napoli-round-of-16-second-leg-uefa-champions-league-2023-24-1024x683.jpg\")
Lamine Yamal debuted under Xavi. (Photo by Alex Caparros\/Getty Images) (Photo by Alex Caparros\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Xavi also took time to praise Barcelona\u2019s rising star Lamine Yamal, a player who actually debuted under Xavi.<\/p>\n
\u201cLamine Yamal is a chosen player. A genius of football.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s already the best or one of the best players in the world right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt now depends on his mindset, his energy, and his desire to make history. It\u2019s in his hands.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barcelona exit<\/p>\n
Reflecting on his own departure, Xavi suggested that his exit was not entirely straightforward, hinting at internal issues within the club.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believed I could have continued at the club. That was the agreement we had with the president, until something happened with someone inside the club.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite that, he remains proud of the foundations he helped build.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe we did a very good project, and laid very strong foundations for Flick.\u201d<\/p>\n
Looking at his journey with perspective, he framed the experience as a crucial step in his development.<\/p>\n
\u201cI take what happened at Bar\u00e7a as a lesson learned. I\u2019m a young manager who coached Bar\u00e7a at a very early age. This experience will serve me greatly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI see it as a master\u2019s degree for my coaching career.\u201d<\/p>\n
Words for Flick<\/p>\n
Finally, Xavi praised current manager Hansi Flick, expressing confidence in the direction of the team.<\/p>\n
\u201cHansi Flick is doing an exceptional job, and I think the players have matured to compete.\u201d<\/p>\n
He concluded by highlighting the strength of Barcelona\u2019s core, many of whom developed under his guidance.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a team for the future 10 years with this generation of Lamine, Kounde, Ferm\u00edn, Gavi, Pedri. All of these are players that we trained and developed.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez has delivered a series of fascinating revelations about his time at the club,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":12002,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[92,222,223,5536,7241],"class_list":{"0":"post-12001","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-barcelona","8":"tag-barcelona","9":"tag-barcelona-news","10":"tag-fc-barcelona","11":"tag-xavi","12":"tag-xavi-hernandez"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12001"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12001\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}