{"id":132917,"date":"2023-12-19T15:38:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T15:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2023\/12\/19\/carlo-ancelotti-wades-in-on-growing-criticism-of-xavi-and-barcelona\/"},"modified":"2023-12-19T15:38:00","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T15:38:00","slug":"carlo-ancelotti-wades-in-on-growing-criticism-of-xavi-and-barcelona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2023\/12\/19\/carlo-ancelotti-wades-in-on-growing-criticism-of-xavi-and-barcelona\/","title":{"rendered":"Carlo Ancelotti wades in on growing criticism of Xavi and Barcelona \u2013"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

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Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has leapt to the defence of Barcelona counterpart Xavi after coming under fire from the Spanish press.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Barcelona\u2019s chances of retaining their La Liga title are fading quickly \u2013 they sit third in the table and are nine points adrift of surprise leaders Girona. Xavi has at least guided Barca to the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time since the 2020\/21 season, though they have been handed a tough draw in the last 16 against Italian champions Napoli.<\/p>\n

Reports from Spain have claimed Xavi\u2019s methods and public comments are being questioned by Barcelona\u2019s hierarchy, though club president Joan Laporta has outwardly maintained his support for the former midfielder.<\/p>\n

During a recent press conference, Madrid boss Ancelotti was asked about the criticism\u00a0Xavi\u00a0has received of late.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn general, it\u2019s normal for a coach to have criticism,\u201d\u00a0Ancelotti\u00a0said. \u201cWe have to accept it and then everyone can choose the criticisms that they consider fair and unfair.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe judgment of the coaches is only based on the results. No one cares about the coach\u2019s methodology or ability to manage the locker room. It\u2019s only if he wins or doesn\u2019t win and Xavi knows this very well. For me, he is a great coach.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Xavi\u2019s\u00a0Barcelona\u00a0are currently way off the pace in La Liga, Ancelotti\u2019s\u00a0Madrid\u00a0are only two points behind Girona. Their season has largely centred around the scoring exploits of summer signing Jude Bellingham, who has grabbed 17 goals and five assists in 20 games across all competitions.<\/p>\n

Madrid have also benefitted from larger home crowds again as renovations at the Santiago Bernabeu near completion, while Barcelona\u2019s average attendance has nearly halved after temporarily moving from Camp Nou to the Estadi de Montjuic.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n

<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has leapt to the defence of Barcelona counterpart Xavi after coming under fire from the Spanish press. Barcelona\u2019s chances of retaining their La Liga title are fading quickly \u2013 they sit third in the table and are nine points adrift of surprise leaders Girona. Xavi has at least guided Barca […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":132918,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-132917","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nCarlo Ancelotti wades in on growing criticism of Xavi and Barcelona \u2013 - Ghanamma.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2023\/12\/19\/carlo-ancelotti-wades-in-on-growing-criticism-of-xavi-and-barcelona\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Carlo Ancelotti wades in on growing criticism of Xavi and Barcelona \u2013 - Ghanamma.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has leapt to the defence of Barcelona counterpart Xavi after coming under fire from the Spanish press. 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