‘To be honest, the hardest decision was not to call up Memphis,’ says Xavi. ‘I have a good relationship with Memphis. His response was brilliant and very mature. He understood everything.’ ‘The door is open to all players, so it’s still open for Memphis too.’ But why Xavi didn’t select Memphis remains unclear. ‘That’s something between us and I’d prefer to keep it private.’ Xavi recently travelled to Liverpool to speak with Virgil van Dijk, who was rumoured to be considering leaving the Dutch national team. That is not the case, says Xavi. “Virgil will remain captain. I went to see him and it was a very good meeting. He is a true leader, very positive and motivated.” Donyell Malen has been scoring goals left, right and centre for AS Roma since January. However, the striker withdrew from the Netherlands squad this weekend due to injury. Xavi is disappointed, but remains calm about the situation. “It’s a shame because Donyell is in really good form. He had to pull out at the last minute, but that’s football. I think Donyell is fine; I don’t know how long he’ll need to recover, but the injury isn’t too serious.” Wout Weghorst isn’t in the squad, so the Dutch national team seems to be missing a tall striker who could be brought on, for example, if they need to force the issue. “I had Luuk de Jong at Barcelona, who scored a lot of goals for us,” recalls Xavi. “But we believe the current squad is the best group of 26 players.” “We’ll draw up a Plan B and a Plan C – everything we need. But we believe we now have the ideal squad for that, with all the players we need.” What is the main message Xavi wants to convey to his players? “I want to explain the values we uphold on the pitch. And I want to explain my leadership style – that I’m open with my players and that we want to create a close-knit group that’s like a family. The main aim is, of course, to win, and throughout that process we want to support them and enjoy it together.” Xavi reiterates: “The Saudi league isn’t a bad league. If a player is fit and in good form, he’s welcome in the Dutch national team.” “We assess players on an individual basis. It’s about them, not the league they play in.” ‘I’m going to try,’ says Xavi Hernández when asked if he’s going to learn the Wilhelmus by heart. ‘At any rate, that’s what I’ve promised Marianne (van Leeuwen, KNVB director).’ ‘The standard in the Eredivisie is good,’ says Xavi. ‘Yesterday I was at the Feyenoord v Utrecht match; before that, I was at the Ajax v PSV match. In my view, that was Champions League level.’ ‘The big teams perform at a high level and have good players and great talents. But ultimately, for me, it’s not about the clubs, but about the players themselves – their qualities, passions and goals.’ Xavi has been talking a lot today about the values he wants to instil in the Dutch national team. When asked what he meant by that, he said: “A positive attitude. We want the players to enjoy themselves in training. We’ll be together for two weeks, so respect for one another, the press and our opponents is also important.” “And then there’s commitment. We have to run and work as a team. Teamwork is the most important thing in our sport. Don’t think of yourself, but of each other. These values are very important for me to convey to the players.” Xavi is very positive about Joey Veerman, who was long overlooked by Ronald Koeman for the Dutch national team and was not selected for the World Cup either. Under Xavi, however, the Dortmund midfielder is back in the squad. “Veerman is playing well. Technically, he’s top class. He can help us with our build-up play and the way we play. I’m very impressed with him and he can help the team.” ‘I’d rather not talk about the past or the last World Cup. I have a lot of respect for Ronald (Koeman), so we’re focusing on the present. We’re looking ahead; over the next few days we’ll be talking to each other as a group.’ Luciano Valente has made an excellent start to the season at Feyenoord and was already called up to the Dutch national team last year. However, Xavi did not select him. When asked why, the national team manager remained non-committal. “I’d rather not comment on players who aren’t in the squad. We are, of course, keeping an eye on him; he’s a player with great potential. So the door is always open for him.” “In my view, he’s an attacking midfielder, and we have plenty of options in that position.” Xavi keeps in touch with several coaches “in various ways”. He also speaks to coaches in the Eredivisie, such as his former team-mate Giovanni van Bronckhorst. “I have a good relationship with Gio. At Ajax, I speak more to Jordi (Cruijff), but I also speak to coach Míchel.”   submitted by   /u/Roller95 [link]   [comments]