Barcelona's report on Xavi when he was only 14 years old

Barcelona's brand of football coaching and training has been a world reference almost since its beginnings. However, it has lost some of its protagonism within the team after the club's board took a different route, following the more common business model of signing players with potential from other clubs, often for large sums of money. 

However, no one has forgotten about Xavi Hernandez's generation. Incredible players such as Iniesta, Puyol, Jordi Alba, and others all made it into the first team and ended up being part of Barcelona's most successful, glorious and fondly remembered time in its history. 

Now a coach himself at Al-Sadd, Xavi was not always the brilliant player he became, as this report from his coaches at the youth academy show. Still, they could clearly see the potential already, as this passage depicting a 14-year-old Xavi from the book "La Masía: training people beyond sport" shows: 

Running errors: Running on his heels (his movements are slow and he has a hard time getting started).

Balance: Regular

Coordination: Good. His movements are correct but lacking in speed.

Flexibility: Regular. He needs to work a lot on this.

Ability: Good. Without being his biggest strength, he has resources in his game to take advantage of any situation.

Organic resistance: Good. Looks like a true midfielder.

Muscle endurance: Good (200 meters).

Speed: Regular. Must improve his agility and speed of movement.

Fast Force: Regular (horizontal stop).

Controls: Excellent. Supplements this lack of speed in his movements with excellent ball controls.

Passes: Very good. It should improve in the left leg to be able to use this quality better. Great personality in the field.

Centers: Good. Almost never forced to this action.

Shot: Acceptable. He must improve it for his incorporations to the attack (like Guardiola).

Conduction: Very good. Good sense of protection of the ball. Almost never loses it.

Dribbles: Good. Without being his habitual resource his technical level is correct in the dribble.

Position on the field: Excellent. It is undoubtedly his best quality. He is always where he should be and he is always a support and a valid exit for his teammates.

Aggressiveness: Regular. His eminently technical game sometimes makes this aspect difficult.