Xavi Hernandez grateful to Barcelona icon Pep Guardiola for vote of confidence – “He knows about the difficulty”

Xavi Hernandez has been under extreme pressure over the last few days. Following Sunday’s dismal defeat to Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup final, there has been plenty of discussion about whether he should keep his position as Barcelona’s head coach.

Earlier this week, at The Best FIFA awards in London, Pep Guardiola – former Barcelona manager and teammate of Xavi – gave his public backing to the 43-year-old coach. Speaking to the media (via Sport) ahead of Thursday’s Copa del Rey clash with Unionistas de Salamanca, Xavi thanked the Manchester City manager for his words.

“First of all, I would like to thank Pep for the support and the words of love. He knows about the difficulty and demands of coaching such a big club.”

Xavi also revealed the contents of conversations that he has had with president Joan Laporta in the aftermath of Sunday’s defeat.

“We had contact. There is calm. The message is Tots units fem forca (Together we are strong). We’re in good spirits and there are three titles left, the most important ones. There is faith and trust with the staff and players.”

It is essential that Barcelona win against Unionistas on Thursday, and convincingly too, otherwise the pressure on Xavi will only get worse. For now at least, there is hope that things will get better.