Xavi Hernandez: "Spain have always had a fear of Italy"

Xavi Hernandez: "Spain have always had a fear of Italy"

Xavi Hernandez has been, with all probability, the best player to have ever played for the Spanish national team. A great part of the success achieved in the past decade is down to him. 

Therefore few people are more interesting to listen to than Xavi, before a clash between Italy and Spain. The former Barça captain has spoken about the game in an interview with 'La Gazzetta dello Sport'.

He said: "Possession is not the priority for Italy, and Spain suffers without the ball. Italy does not. That is the big difference between the teams.

Sincerely I think that for their philosophy, character and competitiveness, Italy is the most uncomfortable opposition for the Spanish national team.

The history of Italy has been constructed through their competitive spirit and so Spain has always had a fear of Italy."

The current Al Sadd midfielder believes that "historically, in the past and the present, they have always been somewhat uncomfortable ties. Recently we have often won, but always with the feeling that we could also have lost. This Monday's game will really be very difficult for Spain."

Having said that, Xavi is also convinced that the Italians will be uneasy about the pairing: "Of course, when they used to play against us some years ago, they were more confident, now they are less so. This has also become a problematic game for them."

The Barcelona legend considers that "it is a shame that this game has arrived so soon. It could easily have been a semi-final or even a final, taking into account the level shown by all the teams in this European Championships. Watching the tournament, for me, both Italy and Spain are candidates to play the final."