discuss right now the improvement of Barcelona since the arrival of Xavi Hernández it’s just stupid. Not only because of the huge change in the team in terms of play and attitude on the field, but also in terms of results. Xavi joined the team on matchday thirteen, ninth in the table, with 17 points, tied with Valencia and Espanyol, and eleven points behind the then leader, Real Sociedad.
He has needed only 17 days to turn the table around in a way that is as forceful as it is spectacular. In factonly one team has endured the ‘Xavi effect’: Real Madrid has added 42 points since the arrival of the coach from Egar, for the 40 accumulated by Barcelonaalthough the Blaugrana have one less game, the postponed one against Rayo at the Camp Nou, so if they win, they would add one more point than Ancelotti’s team right now.
In any case, the ‘Xavi effect’ has already achieved one of the priority objectives when he took over the team: to settle in the Champions zone. Right now they are second in the table, although tied with Sevilla and Atlético, with 57 points.
Once it has already reached second place, now the challenge is to keep looking up, where there is a lonely Real Madrid, which with 69 points, has a fairly comfortable safety cushion, although a stumble in the next two days (Getafe and Seville) could add a bit of excitement to the championship.
What seems clear is that the ‘Xavi effect’ is here to stay. He has added ten points more than Sevilla, eight to Betis and six to Atlético de Madrid. Taking into account that he has a postponed game left, the advantages could be even greater.
It also adds a streak of six wins in a row in LaLiga, the last two very meritorious having been against the first, Real Madrid (0-4), and the second, Sevilla, (1-0), making it clear that right now there is no team in better shape than the blaugrana. Other victories, such as against Atlético (4-2) or Valencia (1-4), testify to the great moment of Barcelona.
It will be necessary to see if Xavi still has time to put Real Madrid in trouble. Due to the desire and conviction of the coach and the rest of the squad, it will not be. To do this, he not only needs to win the remaining nine games, but also for the Whites to fail in at least three of the remaining eight: marked in red on the calendar are Real Madrid’s visits to the fields of Seville, Osasuna and Atletico Madrid.