Xavi Hernandez Reveals Why Barcelona is the Hardest Club to Manage

• Barcelona defeated Real Maddrid 1-0 in the Copa del Rey
• But the Catalan giants were criticised for the defensive style of play
• Xavi believes Barcelona are always expected to play attractive football

La Liga leaders Barcelona are the hardest club in the world to manage due to their critics always being ready to snipe at them even after big wins, coach Xavi Hernandez said Saturday.

Barcelona beat Real Madrid 1-0 in the Copa del Rey semi-final first leg on Thursday at the Santiago Bernabeu, but were criticised for only having 34 percent possession.

Xavi said the demands on his team to play good football as well as winning games and lifting trophies meant his job was trickier than any other in the game.

"You beat Real Madrid 1-0 and it seems that it's not convincing enough, whereas if it was the reverse there would be a national party," Xavi told reporters.

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"So it is the hardest club in the world. Now you believe me? I said it last year and got bashed for it.

"At Barcelona you have to win and convince, to have 70 percent of possession and create 16 chances while the opponent makes three.

"That is the objective, and that is our objective, but you have to understand that there is an opponent who is the reigning La Liga and European champions, and we're competing with them."

Xavi said it was "absurd" to criticise Barcelona for not keeping the ball when they faced a Madrid side pressing them high up the pitch.

"We did not want to set up in our box, Madrid pushed us there, that wasn't our objective for the game," said Xavi.

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Barcelona could fire Xavi

Xavi Hernandez’s reign as Barcelona’s head coach could come to an abrupt end after another disastrous campaign in Europe under the Spaniard.

The Catalans’ dream of lifting another European title suffered a major blow after they were booted out of the Europa League by Premier League giants, Manchester United.

According to Forbes, Xavi has the full backing of the Barcelona board for now despite his failings in Europe, as the hierarchy at Camp Nou sees winning La Liga as a priority.

Xavi on Barcelona's fatigue crisis

Earlier, Sports Brief reported on Barcelona manager, Xavi having rotate his squad in the Catalans' victory over Cadiz on Sunday to prevent his players from getting fatigued.

The Spaniard opted to bring in six fresh faces with a host of second-half changes and the club still in the lead, to secure a 2-0 victory and extend their grip at the top of La Liga.

The Barcelona manager has now revealed the Europa League reverse fixture against Manchester United prompted him to make the changes to keep his players fresh.