Xavi: "We have to go out there, win it and that's it"

Barcelona player Xavi gave an interview to Spanish sports weekly paper Don Balón.





How would you compare Manchester United and Chelsea?
They have a different philosophy. United maybe wants to have the ball more and their football is more similar to ours. They're an attacking team, they have very fast people up front. I think that one of the keys will be to have ball possession, to dominate the pitch. If we can achieve this, the victory will be closer.

You think the Englishmen will wait and play the counter-attack?
I suppose they will try to get the ball. They know what our philosophy is, that we feel most comfortale with the ball.

What about Henry and Iniesta?
I'm convinced they will play. I have been talking with them and they're very motivated.

They say that Manchester is even more favourite because of the absences of Alves, Abidal and Márquez...
Not at all. We don't want to look for excuses in any way. We want to win the final in Rome. We have to go out there, win it and that's it.

The Messi vs Cristiano Roaldo duel will be decisive?
It's clear that the team is the first thing and more important than anything. That's our philosophy: modesty and hard work have to lead us to victory. On the other hand, it's neverhtless logical that individual players can make the difference. Messi is better than any other player right now. People who don't want to see that don't like football.

There's some feeling of revenge because of the semi-final elimination last season?
No, that thought didn't cross my mind once. We just want to win because it's a final. We want to compete and at the end of the 90 or 120 minutes we want to lift the cup.

How do you see their midfield?
They have physical and technical qualities. Carrick is a very complete player, like is Scholes.

You'll meet Carrick a lot...
It's the player who gives balance to their team. He's good technically and in the built-up. He is somehow similar to Touré. Physically strong and a good header. I also want to point out Scholes. He's capable of anything. I like him a lot.

What does it mean to play a final with so many youth players?
It's something to be proud of and it's a reward for all those years of working at the academy, both for the players as for the coaches and all the other people involved.


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