Xavier Hernandez Creus was born on January 25, 1980. He is a world-famous player who has won more than 31 international awards, including the Ballon d’Or, Olympic medals, and the Prince of Asturias Award. He has made a significant impact on Spanish football in general and FC Barcelona in particular.
Brief About Early Career of Xavi Hernandez
Xavi progressed through the Barcelona youth and reserve levels until becoming a vital component of Josep Maria Gonzalvo’s Barcelona B squad, which was promoted to the Second Division. Although he was first influenced by Barcelona’s compatriot Pep Guardiola, Xavi grew up watching English football and idolizing midfielders John Barnes, Paul Gascoigne, and Matt Le Tissier.
Xavi’s Club Career
Xavi who is 5 feet 6 inches (1.68 metres) tall with the weight of 150 lbs that is equal to 68KG according to this converter, made his La Liga debut against Valencia on October 3, 1998, and was awarded the ‘Breakthrough Player of the Year’ in 1999 after winning the Spanish championship. During the next season, he became the team’s primary playmaker, scoring 7 goals and adding 20 assists over the next two seasons.
Xavi was the team’s vice-captain during the 2004-05 season, when Barcelona won La Liga and the Supercopa de España, and in 2005 he was awarded the ‘La Liga Spanish Player of the Year.’ During the 2008-09 season, Xavi Hernandez explored a move to Bayern Munich, but was persuaded to stay at Barcelona by coach Pep Guardiola.
Xavi Hernandez finished the season with 29 assists, including 20 in La Liga, making him the league’s leading assist provider. In the 2009-10 season, he set a new record for most assists and helped Barcelona win the La Liga title. In the 2010 FIFA Ballon d’Or, he finished third behind Barcelona colleagues Lionel Messi and Andrés Iniesta.
In early 2011, they defeated Manchester United in the Champions League final and defeated Santos in the FIFA Club World Cup final, in which he scored a goal and added an assist. In terms of goal scoring, the 2011-12 season was the best of his career. He scored 10 goals in La Liga, one in the FIFA Club World Cup, and two in the Copa del Rey, which his team also won.
Xavi Hernandez played his final season at Barcelona in 2014-15, during which he earned his 500th La Liga appearance. During the season, he served as captain of the squad and came in as a substitute in their Champions League final victory over Juventus.
In mid-2015, Xavi signed a three-year deal with Qatari club Al Sadd, and in his first match for the squad, a 4-0 win against Mesaimeer on September 13, 2015, he made an assist. His first trophy with the squad came in the 2017 Qatar Cup.
Xavi’s International Career
Xavi was a member of the 1999 Spanish U-20 World Cup winning team. The next year, he made his senior national team debut and went on to play 133 games for Spain. He was instrumental in Spain’s unbeaten performance in the UEFA Euro 2008 tournament. In 2010, he played a key role in Spain’s first World Cup victory, completing 599 passes with a 91 percent success rate.
He was the most successful player in Spanish history when he joined the national squad for the 2014 World Cup, but his team was eliminated at the group stage. He announced his retirement from international football shortly after, bringing an end to a 14-year career.
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