Xavi touched down in the Qatari capital Doha on Tuesday and today he will be unveiled as a player for Al Sadd Football Club at 5pm in an official press conference at the team's home ground, the Jassim Bin Hamad stadium.

The Spaniard arrives in the Qatar Stars League (QSL) after winning La Liga and the Champions League with Barcelona this season, It brings to an end a 17-year career in Barça's first team, during which he has won eight league titles and four Champions Leagues. Now the “Puppet Master” will begin his career with the all-time most successful QSL club – Al Sadd Sports Club.

As part of his contract, Xaxi will become an ambassador for the 2022 World Cup to be held here in Qatar and will also take coaching courses with the aim to one day return back to his beloved Barcelona.

In the last two seasons, the Wolves have struggled to supress the rise of Lekwhiya SC who has won the league four times in the past five seasons.

The most highly decorated player ever to grace the QSL will hope that some of that Catalan magic rubbs off on his new team as he aims to win the domestic Qatari league in the season ahead.

Other big names to have played for the Wolves include his compatriot Raul (2012-14) as well as the Brazilian goal scoring legend Romario (2003).

Player Profile
Born on January 25, 1980, in Terrassa, Spain, Xavi Hernández joined FC Barcelona's La Masia training academy at age 11. Embodying the style taught at La Masia, the midfielder used his precise passing to lead Barcelona to multiple titles. He helped Spain win the 2010 FIFA World Cup along with the 2008 and 2012 European Championships, and finished third in Ballon d'Or voting from 2009-2011.

The icing on the cake for the midfielder in his final season at Barca was to win the trebble, with his final farewell party in Berlin at the Champions league final where he came on for the final quarter of an hour.



Homegrown Star
Xavi, made his breakthrough into the Blaugrana first team in 1998 where he scored his first  goal in August of the same year. He then went on to be named La Liga Best New Player of the Year. He was also a member of the FIFA World Youth Championship–winning team in 1999, and earned a silver medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

By 2004-05, Xavi was a leader of a talented Barcelona side that featured fellow La Masia products Carles Puyol and Andrés Iniesta, as well as Brazilian stars Deco and Ronaldinho.

Xavi's style was considered an embodiment of the pass and move method taught in the Barcelona system, and it was effective enough to lead Barcelona to league and Super Cup wins in 2005.

Torn knee ligaments forced Xavi to miss most of Barcelona's La Liga–winning season and Champions League victory in 2006, though he helped the club win another Super Cup that August.

International Acclaim
Xavi's profile received a boost with his performance at the 2008 European Championship, when he scored in a semifinal victory over Russia and assisted on the solitary goal in the final vs. Germany to earn Player of the Tournament honors. It turned out to be the start of an amazing stretch for the outstanding midfielder and his Barcelona teammates, who went on to win a staggering six titles in 2009. Afterward, Xavi finished third in the voting for the Ballon d'Or award for the first of three consecutive years.

Spain claimed its first FIFA World Cup championship in 2010, with Xavi earning a well-deserved spot on the tournament All-Star team. Two years later, he again earned all-tournament honors at the European Championship as Spain became the first country to win three successive major international events.

With so much success under his belt, it was only a matter of time before the playmaker secured the top spot in the record books of his club and his country. In January 2011, he set a record with his 550th career appearance for Barcelona.

Victory in La Liga saw him and Barca pick up the trebble and he is undoubtedly one of the most successful players in Spain and on the international stage.

With his playing days in Europe now over ,he will undoubtedly hope to add to that number in Asia with Al Sadd, potentially becoming the first player to have won the European Champions League and the Asian Champions League.

Tributes
After 17 years at Barcelona Xavi has seen a flood of tributes pour in, many prominent players and coaches showing their respect for the “heartbeat” of the Barca team.

Lionel Messi: “It was a pleasure to be next to Xavi. He is a different player who makes things look easy. He sees passes that only he sees.

Johann Cruyff: “If Xavi has a bad day, Barcelona do not play half as well as usual. He dominates the rhythm of the game. His play allows the team to function. He is different.”.