A player named Steven Gerrard and another member of England’s so-called “Golden Generation” were mentioned by Xavi Hernandez as being among the players who could have played for Barcelona in their prime.
The Spaniard, who is referred to as “one of the best midfielders in history” on the official website of Barcelona, would go on to win eight La Liga titles and four Champions League victories during his time with the Catalan giants.
In total, Xavi spent seventeen years in the first team of Barcelona, during which time he won a number of trophies. During that time, he played alongside some of the greatest players in the history of the sport, such as Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta, and Ronaldinho.
On the other hand, he never shared the pitch with an English player during that time period.
Having said that, the former Spain international has been asked in the past to name some English players that he would have “loved” to play alongside at Barcelona. He has responded enthusiastically to this question.
Match of the Day published an interview with him in 2014, in which he stated, “I would have any top technically gifted player on my team.” The first was John Barnes, and the second was Paul Gascoigne.
Additionally, he stated that Gerrard and Lampard both had the potential to play for Barcelona. It is clear that they are players with excellent technique. Rather than focussing on the physical aspects of the game, we put an emphasis on technique here. Therefore, a significant number of English players have the potential to play for Barcelona.
“I remember John Barnes, Paul Gascoigne, and Matt Le Tissier,” Xavi said in response to the question of whether or not he had any British idols when he was growing up. In the past, we paid a lot of attention to English football. During those times, they would play highlights, and Le Tissier would score some truly remarkable goals.
I remember Gascoigne playing some great matches during the European Championships that were held in England. I also remember the’sombrero’ that Gascoigne scored against Scotland at Wembley Stadium. We were blown away by it.”
Xavi would go on to describe Jack Wilshere, a former midfielder for Arsenal, as a “amazing player” after being prompted to name his favourite English player.
He continued by saying, “Raheem Sterling is going to have a very successful future.” On the other hand, there are the more experienced players, such as John Terry, Frank Lampard, and Steven Gerrard. The fact that they have won every single title makes them a part of English history.
After some time had passed, the midfielder would later dismiss the possibility of playing in the Premier League while simultaneously reiterating his desire to play for Barcelona, his boyhood club.
One of the most appealing leagues is the Premier League. The Liverpool football club, for instance, is a team that possesses something unique, including the stadium, the fans, and everything else. Barcelona, on the other hand, is always my top priority because it is my life and my world. He stated, “I am fortunate and I would not change it for anything in the world.”
The fact that Matt Le Tissier never left Southampton is something that I believe was a good thing for him; however, in today’s world, there are very few instances of this happening. I have been fortunate enough to have been a part of Barcelona for such a long period of time.
