Barcelona boss Xavi opens up on failed Frenkie de Jong transfer and issues Man Utd verdict

Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez has been speaking ahead of his side’s Europa League clash with Manchester United.

Barca dropped out of the Champions League at the group stage, and they will now take on United for a chance to progress to the knockout stage of the Europa League. It’s a tough draw for the Red Devils, who were given the worst possible punishment for finishing second in their Europa League group, behind Real Sociedad.

Xavi’s men are currently nine points clear at the top of La Liga - though Real Madrid play their game in hand on Wednesday night - and they welcome United to Camp Nou on the back of 11 straight wins across all competitions. Though, Erik ten Hag’s men are in good form themselves, seemingly improving week-by-week as they get to grips with their new boss’s system.

Xavi acknowledged as much in his pre-match press conference, saying: “It will be a great game. A spectacular knockout clash. I think that the two teams go into it in very good form, with good results. Ten Hag has changed the face of this team. He is doing very good work, with a tremendous physical capacity. They have very good things and they can complicate things for us.

“I expect intensity, pace...it’s Europe. We want to show that we are at a level to compete in Europe.”

One of Barca’s in-form players this season has been midfielder Frenkie de Jong, who was pursued by United in the summer amid the Blaugrana’s financial issues. De Jong would have been allowed to leave Camp Nou, but he was determined to stay, and Xavi is delighted he did.

“(Frenkie) was very clear with me in the summer,” added the Barca boss. “He wanted to stay with Barca. He didn’t have any doubt. He is our player and I am very happy with him. He is enjoying time on the pitch and I think that is what’s most important.”