Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti moves to defend under-fire Barcelona counterpart Xavi

Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti has spoken out over the ongoing criticism being aimed in the direction of Barcelona counterpart Xavi Hernández.

Spanish tactician Xavi has of course seen his name cast into the spotlight in the Spanish media over the course of recent weeks.

This comes amid a concerning spell of form on the part of Barcelona.

The Blaugrana have been condemned to defeat in each of their last two, most recently at the hands of Royal Antwerp in the Champions League in midweek.

This made it just four wins in nine across all competitions, with the Catalan giants now a full seven points adrift of the pace atop the La Liga table.

And yet, even more concerning than their results, have been the club’s performances.

Barca have far too often of late looked like a team in the midst of a major disconnect, struggling to click into gear at both ends of the pitch.

Heavy blame, in turn, has inevitably been placed upon the doorstep of headmaster Xavi.

Blaugrana supporters across the globe have already gone as far as to call for the Spaniard to be sent on his way by the Camp Nou brass, adamant that he does not possess the required tactical nous to lead the club back to the top of Spanish and European football alike.

One individual of an altogether different opinion, though, comes in the form of Carlo Ancelotti.

Speaking to the media ahead of his side’s meeting with Villarreal on Sunday, Real Madrid boss Ancelotti was drawn on Xavi’s ongoing woes.

But the Italian was quick to jump to his defence, adamant that his Barca counterpart “is a great coach”:

“In general, it’s normal for a coach to have criticism,” Ancelotti began, as cited by Mundo Deportivo. “We have to accept it and then everyone can choose the criticisms that they consider fair and unfair. The judgment of the coaches is only based on the results. No one cares about the coach’s methodology or ability to manage the locker room. It’s only if he wins or doesn’t win and Xavi knows this very well. For me, he is a great coach.”

Conor Laird | GSFN