Xavi fights all the way for Barcelona

Barcelona star Xavi does not believe his side’s Champions League semi-final mauling at the hands of Bayern Munich signals the end of an era for the Catalan club.

Barca established themselves as the world’s leading side during a stunning run of success that saw them win 14 trophies in four years under Pep Guardiola.



They are also poised to reclaim the La Liga title this season in Tito Vilanova’s first campaign in charge.



But after being humiliated 7-0 on aggregate by Bayern, Xavi said:

“There’s no need to be drastic. This team still have a future. We have competed very well up until now.



“I am always optimistic and this team have the desire. We have not been able to get through the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey and Champions League, but we have the team to carry on.



“On Sunday we have another competition.”

That is when Barca play against Real Betis which should see them replace Real Madrid as Spanish champions and heal those European wounds.



Midfielder Cesc Fabregas said: “The players are hurt. We have to react and win La Liga as soon as possible.”


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Top Richest footballers in the World

Former Real Madrid striker Raul Gonzales is the richest Spanish footballer, according to a recent report run by Goal.com on the sport’s richest.

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Raul who nows players for Qatari side Al Sadd, after a spell with German club Schalke, is worth around €44m, beating Barcelona striker David Villa (€43m), Iker Casillas (€35m) and Fernando Torres (€29m).



Another former Los Blancos player, David Beckham is number one on the list, earning a staggering 200m euros, whilst Barca’s Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo sit second and third respectively.



Another Real Madrid player, Kaka is fourth on the list, whilst Ronaldinho, now playing Brazil sits fifth.



Full List



1. David Beckham (PSG) – 200 million euros



2. Lionel Messi (Barcelona) – € 134m



3. Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) – € 130m



4. Kaká (Real Madrid) – € 80m



5. Ronaldinho (Atletico Mineiro) – € 73m



6. Samuel Eto’o (Anzhi Makhachkala) – € 60m



7. Wayne Rooney (Manchester United) – € 58m



8. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (PSG) – € 55m



9. Rivaldo (Sao Caetano) – € 53m



10. Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United) – € 49m



11. Thierry Henry (New York Red Bulls) – € 48m



12. Michael Owen (Stoke City) – € 46.5m



13. Raul Gonzalez (Al Sadd) – € 44m



14. David Villa (Barcelona) – € 43m



15. Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy) – € 41m



16. Ryan Giggs (Manchester United) – € 40m



17. Frank Lampard (Chelsea) – € 38m



18. Robbie Fowler (no team) – € 37.5m



19. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) – € 37m



20. Robinho (AC Milan) – € 36m



21. Iker Casillas (Real Madrid) – € 35m



22. Frank Ribery (Bayern Munich) – € 33.5m



23. John Terry (Chelsea) – € 31.5m



24. Didier Drogba (Galatasaray) – € 29m



25. Fernando Torres (Chelsea) – € 29m



26. Wesley Sneijder (Galatasaray) – € 25.5m



27. Nicolas Anelka (Juventus – transfer) – € 25m



28. Alessandro Del Piero (Sydney FC) – € 24.5m



29. Miroslav Klose (Lazio) – € 24m



30. Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich) – € 24m



31. Francesco Totti (Roma) – € 24m



32. Petr Cech (Chelsea) – € 23m



33. Neymar (Santos) – € 23m



35. Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich) – € 23m



36. Joe Cole (West Ham United) – € 22.5m



37. Andrea Pirlo (Juventus) – € 22.5m



38. Paul Scholes (Manchester United) – € 22m



39. Damien Duff (Fulham) – € 21.5m



40. Park Ji-Sung (QPR) – € 21m



41. Daniele De Rossi (Roma) – € 21m



42. Clarence Seedorf (Botafogo) – € 21m



43. David Trezeguet (River Plate) – € 20m



44. Xavi (Barcelona) – € 20m



45. Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus) – € 19.5m



46. Ashley Cole (Chelsea) – € 19.5m



47. Shunsuke Nakamura (Yokohama F Marinos) – € 19.5m



48. Michael Essien (Real Madrid – transfer) – € 19m



49. Yaya Toure (Manchester City) – € 19m



50. Alessandro Nesta (Montreal Impact) – € 18.5m

Xavi ruled out of El Clasico

Barcelona midfielder Xavi has been ruled out of Saturday's El Clasico with Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.

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Xavi came back from injury for the 3-1 defeat to Real on Tuesday night but it has proved too early and he will now face a further spell on the sidelines.



The club are now hoping that he will be able to play against AC Milan in the second leg of the Champions League last-16 tie.



Xavi has played in 37 El Clasicos in his career, the highest number by any current player.



Team News

(Real Madrid)

- Real Madrid made a statement on Tuesday evening with the 3-1 victory over Barça and they will be hoping lightning strikes twice with another whirlwind away performance in Manchester the following week, so this match is not really their priority.



- Don't be surprised if José Mourinho makes as many as ten changes, as the upcoming Champions League match could well define his tenure in the capital, and the only survivor may be goalkeeper Diego López.



- Michael Essien, Kaká, Marcelo, José Callejon, Ricardo Carvalho, Luka Modrić and Pepe are all likely to get run outs, though Cristiano Ronaldo may feature for an hour or so.

Barcelona



- Coming so soon after the defeat at San Siro, the loss to Madrid was a huge blow for Jordi Roura's team, with the players looking short of answers in big games right now.

(Barcelona)

- Barça are less likely to make wholesale changes with their own Champions League match another ten days away, and they may want to avoid any slip-ups here with the league title potentially their only route to silverware.



- One change which can be preempted is the return of goalkeeper Víctor Valdés, as José Manuel Pinto is the recognised Copa del Rey number 1.



- Xavi has been ruled out for 10-15 days with a hamstring injury, and faces a race to be fit for the Milan game.