"Don’t understand what it means to play for Barca" – Report claims Xavi slammed Barcelona players in dressing room in Bayern defeat
Xavi reportedly slammed Barcelona players by insisting some of them do not understand what it means to play for the Blaugrana during the side's defeat to Bayern Munich, according to Catalan newspaper SPORT.
Barcelona appointed legend Xavi as Ronald Koeman's replacement last month with the hope of turning things around at the club. However, the reality is that the Spaniard's arrival has not brought about any significant changes at Camp Nou.
The Catalans currently sit seventh in the La Liga table with 23 points,13 behind table-toppers Real Madrid. Things went from bad to worse for Xavi's Barcelona when they bowed out of the Champions League this week.
Barcelona faced Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich in their final Champions League group stage game on Wednesday. The La Liga giants were no match for Julian Nagelsmann's side, who registered a 3-0 victory at the Allianz Arena.
Full Time #BayernBarça https://t.co/NbtiSnhJjl
The defeat to Bayern Munich saw Barcelona's Champions League campaign come to an end. Xavi and Co will now have to play in the Europa League, a competition in which they have not participated in since 2004.
Xavi was significantly disappointed with his team's display against Bayern Munich. According to reports, the Spaniard slammed the players in the dressing room after the first half on Wednesday.
Barcelona were trailing 2-0 against the Bavarians going into half-time. Xavi, who was left furious with his side's performance during the first 45 minutes of the game, reportedly said:
"Some of you don't understand what it means to play for Barcelona."
However, Xavi's words were not enough to inspire a comeback from Barcelona, who went on to lose 3-0 against Bayern Munich. Thomas Muller, Leroy Sane and Jamal Musiala found the back of the net for the Bavarians while the La Liga giants could only register two shots on target.
The last time Barcelona played in the Europa League was 2003-04.
Lionel Messi made his debut for Barcelona in 2004-05 and he left 4 months ago.
We're just saying 🤷♂️ https://t.co/i1oUkNhrqH
Xavi will want a massive response from Barcelona
Barcelona were pitted against Bayern Munich, Benfica and Dynamo Kyiv in Group E of the Champions League. The club's inability to secure a place in the round of 16 of the competition will be a huge blow for the Blaugrana faithful.
If reports are to be believed, Xavi was not happy with the attitude of some of his players on Wednesday. The Spaniard will likely demand a massive response from the Barcelona stars in the coming weeks.
Barcelona face Osasuna in La Liga on Sunday and it remains to be seen if they can show some character and return to winning ways in the league.