Xavi: "We are the most attacking team in Europe along with City"

After the Europa League draw against Manchester United, Barça face Cadiz tomorrow to maintain an eight-point lead over Real Madrid, who play tonight in Pamplona against Osasuna.

Xavi has confirmed that he will make rotations with the Old Trafford game next Thursday in mind, although he knows that the Andalusian side have been an uncomfortable opponent for Barça on their last two visits to the Spotify Camp Nou, with a draw and a defeat.

"We expect a defensive opponent, with a lot of second balls, long crosses, a more direct football. Cádiz will play a medium-low block. They will let us keep the ball and we have to know what to do with it. We have to play a good game because they defend very well and we have the experience of last year when they beat us at home", he added.

He also spoke about team rotations:

"We would make them regardless of the result on Thursday. We would also make them if we were playing a league game. There are a lot of players with fatigue, discomfort and a lot of games in a short space of time. There are also people who are training well and deserve it".

Two players who could come into the team against Cádiz are Ferran Torres and Ansu Fati. Xavi is confident in them.

"Ferran needs confidence. I have a lot of confidence in him. When maybe you are not giving what you expected, you need the confidence to be the player we all expect. Ansu has the ability to be a Rashford, it will depend on the confidence he can have. We will give it to him. I am sure he will be important in the present and in the future of the club".

Pablo Torre may also have minutes, given Pedri's absence:

"He's very much a midfielder, he likes to play next to the striker, he's not as much of a midfielder as Pedri. He's used to making the difference near the box. He has fierce competition and he has to be prepared like everyone else. As Kessié has been. He is an example. He's been patient and he's waited for his moment without a bad face, he's been professional, he's waited for his moment and now he's being very important to us", said Xavi, who was very appreciative of Busquets' return to the team after his injury.

"His absence is always noticeable because of his tactical ability, because of the way he recovers balls, you are always in the opposition half thanks to his work, he doesn't lose balls in the build-up area, he always chooses the best pass. His return is great news".

THE SYSTEM

Xavi also spoke about the formation that his team plays on the pitch.

"I've never used 4-4-2 in my life, I don't like it, I haven't worked with it. If we take any photo, we'll see that I've never used it. It depends on what I have. I open up the pitch with a winger, a winger and a full-back, two wingers... Having alternatives makes us stronger. Against Real, for example, it was a very clear 3-4-3 because they play in a diamond formation in midfield and we had to match them. I've heard that we are a defensive team, it's unbelievable. We are the most attacking team in Europe, along with City. We play 3-4-3 or 4-3-3, but never 4-4-2".

NEGREIRA CASE

Some questions about the 'Negreira case' have fallen to Xavi. Xavi made it clear that the dressing room is isolated from this issue. And that they only talk about football. "Today we have focused on Cádiz. Cádiz isolation (laughs). It's dealt with in the best possible way, even with a little joke. We focused on our work. We haven't discussed it as a group, nor have we talked about it".