Xavi Hernández landed in the middle of November 2021 on the Blaugrana bench with a difficult mission: to rescue a Barça immersed in a footballing crisis and low self-esteem that was reflected in the classification. At the time, the first team was ninth and had collected fifteen points in ten games. That Barça had players such as Memphis, Mingueza, Coutinho, Yusuf Demir or Luuk de Jong. With the help of the work done in the winter market, which involved the signings of Ferran Torres, Adama Traoré and Aubameyang, Barça was revitalized. He finished second in the League and qualified for the Champions League. Objective achieved.
That year was undoubtedly the most complicated for Xavi Hernández. But after the results achieved, the coach won the favor of president Joan Laporta to expand the staff. Lewandowski, Raphinha, Marcos Alonso, Koundé and Christensen arrived. Also Kessié and Pablo Torre, who could leave the club this summer. The quality of the staff increased, and so did the resources. Although Xavi was always in favor of playing with two open ends, he soon discovered a formula that worked much better for him. With the defensive stability provided by Araújo and Christensen at the center of the defense and with Koundé as an improvised right-back and Balde on the left, the Egarenc opted for four midfielders. A 4-4-2 in defense that became a 4-3-3 in attack with Pedri or Gavi occupying the false right wing position.
“The League is won by the best. The Copa del Rey or the Champions League are more unfair.” This is one of the phrases that the (almost) always optimistic Xavi Hernández has repeated to the point of exhaustion inside and outside the dressing room. Almost as much as the football concepts that the coach, determined to win his first League and to return to Barça his football stamp, has remarked to the footballers. With Dembélé, the order has worked with many video sessions. With Frenkie de Jong, freedom of movement; with Araújo, the departure of the ball. And young people like Pedri, Balde or Gavi have been instilled with a series of positional concepts to be more offensive.
After winning the League and the Spanish Super Cup, this season the coach wants to take another step. A Barça with more offensive records. To achieve this, the coach will opt for a 3-4-3 with the ball, which will be his most disruptive and risky proposal. Players like Koundé, who met with Xavi to express his doubts and inform him that he prefers to play as a centre-back, already know Xavi’s intentions. The eleven that the coach has in mind has three central players. Araújo or Koundé could occupy the right side, and the recently signed Iñigo Martínez or, in his absence, Marcos Alonso, would play on the left. Christensen’s reliability off the ball would complete the defence.
Up front, Xavi would opt for four midfielders. Oriol Romeu, the signing that is still being worked on, is the defensive pivot that the team would fix. He would have another half partner, with more freedom of movement in attack, like Frenkie de Jong. An interior like Pedri or Gavi would look for the newly signed Gündogan, who is more advanced. The left wing would be occupied by Balde with total freedom of movement in attack and defence. Dembélé or Ansu Fati would occupy the right wing. And Lewandowski, the centre-forward, would not have as much need to drop back to receive. With this drawing that Xavi would study depending on the profile of the opponent, Barça ensures a great presence in the rival field and at the same time provides defensive resources. With Dest and the versatile Sergi Roberto in the squad, Xavi no longer considers signing a right-back so essential. Instead, he would like to add one more midfielder to have six players for the four midfield positions.
