Xavi: 'You play well, you win'

Xavi Hernández was back in the pressroom this Friday afternoon to talk about the upcoming fixture at home to Betis. Here are the highlights of what the FC Barcelona coach had to say.

Tricky opponent

"Betis is a top team, technically one of the best in the league. They have players you can fully trust like Isco, Ayoze, Willian José, Borja..."

"They like to control the ball, so dominating possession will be a key factor in this game. It'll be a tight match."

Big games ahead

"We need to take the three points at home and we'll need the fans there to help us. We have three big games in just seven days, so we need a full Estadi Olímpic."

“We believe the squad is fine. Numbers are limited but we have faith in the young talent we have here. Lamine, Unai, Cubarsí. There are good youth players and we'll make use of them."

"There will be rotations out of necessity. We have seven games in 20 days. We have the squad to deal with that. But there are players who have been playing internationals and some will be rested."

Naming names

Lamine: "He has the natural talent to make a difference. Bojan has important work to do with him. He has personality and his head is screwed on".

Gündoğan: "He took a knock. He did part of the training session yesterday. We'll decide tomorrow. In principle he's available."

Araujo: "Ronald is recovering well and if all goes well he'll be declared fully fit this week."

Ferran: "He gets a lot of merit. He turned his situation around alone. He has spectacular mental strength. He sets an example for everyone."

Contracts and organigrams

"My contract extension will be announced shortly, for sure."

"Deco was an excellent appointment. He knows the club and he's a Barça man."

The Best

"With everything that's been said about me now I could be "The Best". It doesn't matter much to me."

"It's a team job. It's all about prioritising shared goals. There are staff, a president and a board behind it all, but the main protagonists are the players."