Xavi: "Still hungry"

Titles haven't watered down Xavi's desire to win. "The hunger is still there", he assured during an interview with FIFA.com. He believes the league is safe and points out the major challenge this season is the Champions League.

Xavi admits that last year Barcelona didn't perform as well as usual. "I feel that the tension within the group was a touch lower than normal, and we ended up paying for it", he said.

The team is shining once more under the guidance of Vilanova. Xavi understands the comparisons between his current coach and Guardiola are inevitable: "They have very different personalities, but the training sessions are very similar, the system is almost the same, and the desire is still there. It's a case of continuity in every sense of the word".

"The team is very competitive. We'd like to win it all. We always have to be careful though. There won't be lack of talent, and we hope that luck will be on our side too," he said. "The hunger was there and it still is. We have practically the same players and the results couldn't have been better", he added.

He puts a part of all the success over recent years with the national team and with Barcelona down to luck. "We've also been lucky, like with the penalty shootout against Portugal. But we played a fantastic final against Italy and we capped off a great achievement for a generation that couldn't be any better", said the midfield mastermind.

Xavi reiterated that his friendship with Casillas is greater than any sporting rivalry. "With the national team we put any rivalry to one side, knowing that we have the same objective when we come together. Of course, when we play for our clubs we also forget our friendship, but without losing our composure or respect for each other", he explained.