Barcelona icon Xavi believes his Juventus counterpart Andrea Pirlo was 'always the best in Italy'.
The 35-year-old is not a guaranteed starter for the Blaugrana in tomorrow evening's Champions League final between the two sides, but he could join the fight in the second half.
Asked by La Gazzetta dello Sport about his rival Pirlo, Xavi had nothing but praise.
“An unquantifiable talent, a marvel to watch, I am his fan,” he said. “To me, he's always been the best player in Italy.
Barcelona icon Xavi believes his Juventus counterpart Andrea Pirlo was 'always the best in Italy'.
The 35-year-old is not a guaranteed starter for the Blaugrana in tomorrow evening's Champions League final between the two sides, but he could join the fight in the second half.
Asked by La Gazzetta dello Sport about his rival Pirlo, Xavi had nothing but praise.
“An unquantifiable talent, a marvel to watch, I am his fan,” he said. “To me, he's always been the best player in Italy.
“I may be biased as a midfielder, but I really have no doubts.
“He's always been a reference to the other players, the one that others identified with and who had the greatest influence on the game.
“He was already the game-breaker at the age of 18 and he's like that now, except that he plays a little further back on the pitch.
“We underwent the opposite evolution. I started as a playmaker and moved forwards, he went back.”
Many think that tomorrow could be the last great game between these two champions, and the Spaniard feels the same way.
“We could meet again, in Qatar or in Ibiza, but in terms of football it's no longer going to be the same.”