Two reasons Xavi believes that his project at Barcelona will succeed – report

Barcelona’s thrashing at the hands of Real Madrid did not leave Xavi Hernandez with much of a face to show. The Terrassa-based manager’s side was practically outclassed on the night, and the 4-1 scoreline was as embarrassing as it gets.

His press conference reflected the same attitude, for the coach was devastated when speaking to the media. He took a large part of the blame on himself and apologised profusely to the fans for the same.

“I’m embarrassed. This is not the type of match we should play, especially in a final, and against Madrid. As a Barça fan, I am destroyed. I’m sorry for the fanbase. This is not the type of match we should play,” he said.

Xavi keeps confidence

As part of his interview, the coach was asked if he still maintained faith in his project and squad to which spontaneously responded with resounding affirmation.

Mundo Deportivo brings out the reasons that Xavi has in mind as the factors that can propel his project to success.

For starters, the manager saw a veil of psychological overwhelm on the faces of his players after yesterday’s result. This was very different from the relatively neutral reaction after the league Clasico that Ilkay Gundogan publicly called out.

In Xavi’s eyes, such a defeated feeling is the right way to go for his side. He hopes that the team will take the defeat to their heart and come out raring to prove themselves in the coming days.

The first step in his eyes is to look for a ‘reset’ in the team and learn from the mistakes his side have made in recent weeks.

The player factor

Barcelona last season boasted of one of Europe’s most resilient defensive setups which hardly ever conceded a goal. With no change in personnel, the manager sees that he can recover the same form with a little awakening to the players.

Moreover, he sees players like Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, Inigo Martinez and Joao Cancelo as players with a lion’s mentality whose return in the coming weeks will fuel the team’s tanks once more.

Improving the form of Ronald Araujo and Jules Kounde is also up on the list as a top priority,

There are three competitions remaining in the campaign, and Xavi hopes to make a deep run on all three fronts and present his team as a genuine title contender.

The Barcelona manager will look to utilise the new arrivals like Vitor Roque more prominently in the weeks to come and eyes a strong response from his currently defeated dressing room.