Xavi: 'I don't feel robbed at the Ballon d'Or awards'

2026-04-28 12:24 © AFP

Former FC Barcelona player and coach Xavi Hernández had plenty of praise for football legend Lionel Messi, mentioning the Ballon d'Or award and the best midfielders in the world:

"L. Messi is a much better player than I am. There is no comparison or discussion about that.

I don't feel that the Ballon d'Or award was stolen from me."

"Players similar to me are Pedri, Vitinha, Alexis Mac Allister...

There are three or four players who, in my opinion, are the best because they understand football collectively.

They understand that when passing the ball, they are already thinking about the next action. These players don't simply pass the ball for the sake of passing.

For example, Pedri has that. Also Frenkie de Jong, who, in my opinion, is a very underrated player.

I think he is a similar player to what I was."

Xavi Hernández coached FC Barcelona from 2021 to 2024.

During this time, he fought for the La Liga and Spanish Super Cup titles with the Catalans.