Better than Guardiola? Xavi's remarkable record at Barca after El Clasico victory

Stefan Bienkowski

• Updated: 21 Mar 2022 09:34 GMT
• 4 min read

Barcelona fans were on cloud nine on Sunday night as they watched their side well and truly dismantle a hapless Real Madrid side 4-0 in the first El Clasico of 2022.

A brace from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, alongside goals from Ronald Araujo and Ferran Torres made short work of Carlo Ancelotti’s team, who looked desperately lost without Karim Benzema leading the line.

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The result did very little to alter the fate of this season’s La Liga championship, but certainly swung the good-will and momentum in Spanish forward back towards the Catalan giants.

So much so, that many fans and critics alike are now looking at Xavi’s remarkable turnaround at Barca in just a few months and wondering if the club’s young manager could be a new star in the making.

How well is Xavi doing at Barcelona?

Naturally, the most notable and perhaps most important yardstick for which we can measure Xavi’s start to life as Barca manager came on Sunday, when his side thumped Madrid in El Clasico.

But away from that, the young Spanish coach has also done remarkably well in a very short period of time at the Catalan club.

To date, Xavi has won 14 of his first 25 games in charge of Barca, drawing a further seven and losing just four. Which not only means that he’s picked up more points in La Liga since taking over than Madrid have garnered in that same period, but also has a pretty decent points per game average of 1.96.

However, when we narrow in on his record in the Spanish top flight, that average shoots up to 2.31, which is notably higher than his predecessor’s, Ronald Koeman, who managed just 1.96 per league game.

Is he the next Guardiola?

While Xavi may have some way to go before he can start properly comparing himself to Pep Guardiolal, there are some impressive stats that suggest he’s on his way to becoming Barca’s next great manager.

For example, while Guardiola enjoyed a better overall points per game average in his first season in charge (2.24 per game to Xavi’s 1.96), when it came to performances in La Liga, Xavi’s average is actually higher than what the current Manchester City manager achieved in his first league campaign.

Indeed, Guardiola averaged 2.29 points per game, while Xavi is now sitting tall on 2.31 following his side’s win over Madrid. Which may suggest that the Catalan giants have the perfect man in charge on the sidelines.