Xavi recently gave an in-depth interview to Indian podcaster Prakhar Gupta. In the fifth part of this exclusive interview, Xavi addressed topics including "tiki-taka is not an internal team term, positional transformation, the conflict between Ibrahimovic and Guardiola, the 2009 sextuple and the 2011 Champions League final".

Interesting. So was the term "tiki-taka" often discussed in the dressing room at that time? For example, was one-touch passing and quick forward progression emphasized?

No, "tiki-taka" was more of a media creation. What we discussed internally was passing, controlling the ball, playing it to your supporting foot or your dominant foot. "The pass must have enough power, go to the right foot, stop the ball cleanly and look up to assess the situation". This was our fundamental belief. We also did "rondos". Our training sessions always started with rondos, 7 against 2, 6 against 2. There was absolutely no margin for error or losing possession. Whoever lost possession went into the middle. This was our underlying logic.

So your role in that team was to find spaces and deliver killer passes. You were the central figure, not a defensive midfielder, but a midfielder who controlled the game, maintained possession and distributed the ball forward. Your instinct was to perceive all the spaces on the pitch.

Exactly, and the killer pass, especially the final pass into the box. Because at the beginning of my career, I actually played in a more defensive position. But then Rijkaard enlightened me: "No, Xavi, you're perfectly capable of playing as an 8 or even a 10, delivering that final pass and having a more decisive role in the final third". At first, I even resisted a bit. I told Rijkaard: "Frank, I'm not used to this position, I like being in a deeper position, seeing the whole field". He said: "No, Xavi, you have to control the situation and deliver the final pass. Stop the ball, make penetrating passes and create late runs for shots". This move forward completely changed my life and my career.

Was Ibrahimovic before or during this period?

Zlatan was only at the club for one year, the 2009-10 season. We won the Spanish Super Cup and La Liga, but we couldn't defend our Champions League title. We were eliminated by Inter Milan in the semifinals.

Then Inter beat Bayern in the final.

Yes, at the Santiago Bernabéu.

Yes, 2-0, Milito scored twice.

You know your football!

Pretty professional. (Laughs) I remember watching that match. What exactly happened with Zlatan at Barcelona? Because he seemed out of place at that time and made a lot of sarcastic comments afterwards.

As for Zlatan, my personal relationship with him in the dressing room was actually very good. The real problem was between him and Pep. Pep trusted Zlatan for most of the season, but in the final three months, Pep benched him in several crucial matches, opting for Bojan instead. That's where the rift began. Later, Guardiola made it clear to him: "You're no longer in my plans, you need to find another club". That's more or less how it happened.

But Zlatan has a very strong personality, doesn't he? Was he like that in the dressing room too?

I really liked Zlatan. Yes. I liked him because he's incredibly witty and funny. He never stopped talking during training sessions, always telling jokes and making everyone laugh. We were very close, and now he's returned to AC Milan in a directorial role, and we still keep in touch. The conflict didn't occur in the dressing room at all, absolutely not.

Tactical incompatibility?

Yes. I have wonderful memories of Zlatan in the dressing room, always joking around. Sometimes his way of thinking was a bit crazy, but that's Zlatan, you know.

His finishing was incredible too, because with him, you never knew what incredible posture he'd use to strike the ball, or where it would go.

Certainly. Sometimes he was an absolute genius. Everyone would exclaim: "My God, how did he score that! Incredible!". But sometimes a simple pass would inexplicably go wrong, his form fluctuated. But his talent was absolutely world-class. Two meters tall with that kind of flexibility and ball control, an extremely outstanding superstar.

In 2009, you won every possible trophy. An unprecedented "sextuple". Yes. Brother, do you still feel amazed when you look back? It was simply...

To this day, I still believe that was the pinnacle of my career. I was 28, 29 years old at that time, reaching the golden period of complete maturity in terms of mentality and experience. In my opinion, from 28 to 31, 32 years old is the golden age for playing football. This was my personal experience as a player, and I thoroughly enjoyed playing on the pitch. We won every possible honor, with the national team, with Barcelona, we were unstoppable. Everyone remembers when Villa joined later, and we lifted the Champions League trophy again at Wembley in 2011. That was one of the most perfect matches I played in my career. That final against Manchester United was a masterpiece. Even in the second half, we felt that winning the final was very easy. People outside initially thought it would be a tough battle, but we controlled the entire match. We respected Manchester United immensely, but that night, our performance was actually far superior to theirs. I clearly remember Sir Alex Ferguson, Rooney and Ferdinand's comments after the match—they admitted: "This is the strongest team we've faced, truly at the top of the world".

Sir Alex Ferguson was completely taken aback at that moment, because he witnessed dominance of another dimension, the deeply rooted team culture built by a coach over more than a decade. Manchester United was incredibly strong at that time, but they were completely outplayed by you in every aspect, which was truly remarkable.

Frankly, that day we were unstoppable. Our tactical system and our football philosophy showed a decisive difference. Of course, there was also the individual brilliance of superstars like Messi and Villa in attack. But the core remained our tactical concept. We controlled possession, and by having Messi drop deep as a false nine, we firmly established numerical superiority in midfield. The opposing center-backs didn't dare push forward easily, which allowed us to pass the ball calmly in midfield, creating space. We could have scored even more goals. At that moment, we were truly superior to our opponents.

Traducido por IA.

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