Why Xavi is unfairly treated by certain Barca fans 😱
After we drew to Espanyol, many pointed their finger towards Xavi and said it was his fault. I believe people overestimate the amount of influence a manager has on a game. They can only do so much, but what is that?
It’s quite simple:
In football, the objective is to score more goals than the other team. A manager will try to increase the chance of his team scoring, while decreasing the chance of the opponents scoring. Now, there are different ways to do this (methods/philosophies).
In football, the objective is to score more goals than the other team. A manager will try to increase the chance of his team scoring, while decreasing the chance of the opponents scoring. Now, there are different ways to do this (methods/philosophies).
No matter what method a manager use, he will look to:
• Create more chances than the opponents.
• Concede less chances than the opponents.
This way, you increase the likelihood of your team winning. If a manager can do that, he has done what he can.
• Create more chances than the opponents.
• Concede less chances than the opponents.
This way, you increase the likelihood of your team winning. If a manager can do that, he has done what he can.
If we go through the game vs Espanyol:
Barca | Espanyol:
21 shots vs 3 shots
2.2 xG vs 0.9 xG
77% vs 23% (possession)
Barca | Espanyol:
21 shots vs 3 shots
2.2 xG vs 0.9 xG
77% vs 23% (possession)
The numbers reflect what everyone could see. We were in full control the entire game. The players had enough chances to score at least two goals. Espanyol had 0 shots on target in open play.
However, there are things Xavi can’t control ->
However, there are things Xavi can’t control ->
1. The quality of the finishing.
Xavi can’t finish the attacks for his players. The players failed in front of goal. The chances were there, but based on the quality of the finishes, we were expected to score 1 goal - which we did.
Xavi can’t finish the attacks for his players. The players failed in front of goal. The chances were there, but based on the quality of the finishes, we were expected to score 1 goal - which we did.
2. Penalty conceded:
Marcos Alonso made a very unnecessary penalty. Again, not Xavi’s fault. In hindsight, many said Alonso shouldn’t have started. However, he scored our only goal and was reliable for most of the game.
Marcos Alonso made a very unnecessary penalty. Again, not Xavi’s fault. In hindsight, many said Alonso shouldn’t have started. However, he scored our only goal and was reliable for most of the game.
If it wasn’t for Alonso making a penalty, we would have conceded shots with a total value of 0.12 xG. What if Ter Stegen saved the penalty, would that have made Xavi a better coach? No, it was out of his control. Randomness exists in football.
Xavi shouldn’t be criticized as he gave us everything we needed to win. Criticize his method? You can’t expect a much bigger difference between two teams in La Liga. We can always play better, but the draw wasn’t on Xavi. We have created way less, but still won in the past.
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