Xavi confirms he admires Pep Guardiola “very much”, but also praises Carlo Ancelotti, Maurizio Sarri and Antonio Conte.
The Barcelona legend gave an interview to Corriere dello Sport ahead of his former side’s clash with Inter tomorrow, and he also got on to the subject of Italian tacticians.
“Pep is a great friend and a great Coach,” Xavi confirmed.
“I worked with him for a few years and I won’t hide that I admire him very much and that he influenced me, but you Italians are very well set for great Coaches.
Xavi confirms he admires Pep Guardiola “very much”, but also praises Carlo Ancelotti, Maurizio Sarri and Antonio Conte.
The Barcelona legend gave an interview to Corriere dello Sport ahead of his former side’s clash with Inter tomorrow, and he also got on to the subject of Italian tacticians.
“Pep is a great friend and a great Coach,” Xavi confirmed.
“I worked with him for a few years and I won’t hide that I admire him very much and that he influenced me, but you Italians are very well set for great Coaches.
“I’ve studied Sarri’s football and I like it a lot, both when he was at Napoli and now at Chelsea.
“He always wants to have the ball and dominate the game. He didn’t win with Napoli, but maybe he can do it in London. He deserves it for his work, because he gets his teams playing with fluidity.
“He has great ideas and he knows how to put them into practice. Take the signing of Jorginho: he could have put a phenomenon like [Ngolo] Kanté in front of the defence, but he wanted to develop a certain style of football in terms of circulating possession.
“So he managed to find space for the Frenchman and Jorginho, and now his Chelsea are spectacular.
“I also like Ancelotti and Conte. Ancelotti has personality, he knows football all over Europe. He’s good at defensive organisation, but he also likes quality forwards.
“I knew him best when he was at Real, but he’s confirmed himself as a winner everywhere and I’m sure that he’ll be good for Napoli too and that it won’t be easy for Paris Saint-Germain [on Wednesday].
“As for Conte, his teams are tough and he transmits his energy just watching. His career speaks for itself: Juventus, the national team and Chelsea: he’s never failed.”