Xavi explains he laughed when he saw he was nominated for FIFA's The Best

Direct and not devoid of irony, Xavi appears confident and strong in the press room. He referred to Real Betis as a "great team," expressed satisfaction with the squad despite acknowledging that it's "short," and threw a few jabs, taking advantage of the emergence of Lamine Yamal -- "before you used to say I didn't play him and now you're saying I shouldn't play him so much" -- and especially his nomination for FIFA's 'The Best' award.

"It seems like a joke, I don't understand it at all, considering all the criticism I've received, and here I am, in 'The Best,'" he joked.

To start with, he delivered a reassuring message after the international break: "All the players are available, only [Ilkay] Gündogan had a scare with his back. He did part of training on Thursday, and we'll see how he is, but he's available in principle."

He announced rotations, both for philosophy and because "we're going to play seven games in 22 days." The first one is against a team in good form like Betis.

"They are a great team, technically one of the best in the league, with a high level and confident players like Isco, Ayoze, Willian José," he said.

For Xavi, "one of the keys will be to control possession; I've always liked to see [Manuel] Pellegrini's teams play."

With three consecutive games at Montjuïc, against Betis, Antwerp and Celta Vigo, Xavi made an appeal to the fans: "We need our people."

Xavi expressed great satisfaction with the new technical structure led by Deco and the "key figure" that Bojan will represent in the transition phase for young prospects in to the first team.

Since taking over, Xavi has always talked about Barcelona being the most demanding club in the world and the "stress" that comes with it. Despite winning the LaLiga and the Spanish Supercup, the coach received criticism from some quarters, and now he's nominated for 'The Best'.

"I laugh because, with all the criticism I've received, here I am, nominated for 'The Best'. It's incredible, it seems like a joke, I don't understand what happened here," Xavi said with a smile, then adding: "It's the team's work; I don't give it too much importance because it's about prioritizing sporting success... but I can't help but laugh.