Barcelona midfielder Xavi does not believe his side's Champions League semi-final mauling at the hands of Bayern Munich signals the end of an era for the Catalan giants.
Barca established themselves as the leading side on the planet during a stunning run of success that saw them win 14 trophies in four years.
Cesc Fabregas
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They also look poised to reclaim the Primera Division title this season in Tito Vilanova’s first campaign in charge, but while the club may be top dogs in Spain, they no longer appear to be the dominant force in Europe after being humiliated by the Bavarians.
However, although Xavi concedes Bayern were a class apart in sealing their final spot, the Spain international still sees a bright future for Barca.
“I think so, yes.
There’s no need to be drastic. The team has a future, we’ve competed very well up until now. I’m always optimistic and this team has the desire,” he told Canal Plus.
He added: “We’ve not been able to get through the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey and Champions League (but) I think we have the team to carry on. On Sunday, we have another competition.”
Barca could replace Real Madrid as Spanish champions this weekend and their players are now focussing on that match in a bid to banish their European misery.
Midfielder Cesc Fabregas said: “The players are hurt, we have to react and win La Liga as soon as possible. We went up against a very strong Bayern, their counters with (Franck) Ribery and (Arjen) Robben were very hard to stop. But we are Barca, we don’t make excuses.”u00a0
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