Eight highlights from Xavi’s career

 “It’s been a wonderful few years and we’ve achieved a lot of success. I’m leaving with the satisfaction of having done a good job.”

Those were the words that Spanish midfielder Xavi chose in bringing down the curtain on his international career with Spain.

Now 34, the creative linchpin is entitled to feel more than just satisfaction at his glittering 14-year association with La Roja. Twice a European champion and a FIFA World Cup™ winner in 2010 to boot, the Barcelona man has been a central figure in a golden era for Spanish football.

Echoing the sentiments expressed by the player’s many fans at #GraciasXavi, FIFA.com selects eight key moments from the inimitable No8’s hugely impressive career in international football.

A world youth title

Wearing the No8 jersey and playing alongside Iker Casillas, Xavi Hernandez helped Spain win the FIFA U-20 World Cup Nigeria 1999, the country’s maiden world title. Xavi made six appearances in the competition, scoring two goals.

An Olympic silver medal

The Barcelona man put Spain ahead two minutes into the final of the Men’s Olympic Football Tournament Sydney 2000 against Cameroon, who ultimately clawed back a 2-0 deficit to take the game into extra time and penalties. Though Xavi kept his cool to convert in the shootout, team-mate Amaya missed his spot-kick, allowing the Indomitable Lions to snatch gold. Spain’s silver was their last football medal to date, with their only Olympic appearance since then coming at London 2012, where they went out in the group phase.

A senior debut

Jose Antonio Camacho promptly gave the classy midfielder his full international debut, handing him a start in a November 2000 friendly in Seville with the Netherlands, the side against whom Xavi would become a world champion ten years later.

Spain’s 1,000th goal

In opening the scoring against Northern Ireland in a UEFA EURO 2008 qualifier in Belfast, Xavi struck La Roja’s 1,000th goal, though his joy was short-lived as David Healy hit a hat-trick to give the home side a famous win.

Xavi went on to score another 11 times for his country, though his strength lay not so much in his ability to score goals as set them up, a quality he underlined in inspiring Spain to their maiden European and world titles.

A king of Europe

Spain ended a 44-year trophy drought with victory at UEFA EURO 2008, with Xavi walking away with the Player of the Tournament award. His was the pass that set Fernando Torres scampering away to score the winner in the final against Germany at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium. Xavi had earlier scored his first ever UEFA EURO goal in the 3-0 semi-final defeat of Russia, the 500th goal in the history of the competition.

A world champion

“We all agree that Xavi is very important for us, more so in fact than the coach himself.” And so said Vicente del Bosque, expressing a view that was only reinforced by Xavi’s performances at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa. He brought his influence to bear in Spain’s hard-fought semi-final win over Germany. After making a suggestion to Barcelona team-mate CarlesPuyol at half-time and talking it through with Del Bosque, Xavi executed a trademark Barça corner-kick routine, flighting in the perfect delivery for Puyol to head the Spanish into the Final, where they beat the Dutch to become world champions.

A century of caps

25March 2011, and Xavi makes his 100th appearance for La Roja in a EURO 2012 qualifier against Czech Republic, becoming the fourth Spain player to reach the mark after AndoniZubizarreta, Iker Casillas and Raul. Xavi went on to amass 133 caps – second only to Casillas’ 156 – with a round 100 of those games ending in victory for the men in red.

Xavi the peacemaker

When tensions arose in the previously untroubled Spain dressing room during the 2010/11 season, all as a result of succession of feisty matches between Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid and Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, team captains Xavi and Casillas came together and sorted the problem out. In resolving the smouldering conflict and setting an example for youngsters to follow, the two friends were presented with the Prince of Asturias Award for Sport.

M.D