To most, he is known as Xavi, which saves plenty of commentators and pundits alike from mispronouncing his name and looking like ignorant fools (Gareth Southgate will surely agree). It is a hard task to choose between Xavi and his partner in crime, Andres Iniesta but Xavi gets the nod by a hairs breadth. The Spaniard represents all that is brilliant at Barcelona F.C., possibly the greatest team the world has ever seen, playing the game with an ease an impudence that no other team can match. Messi is the poster-boy, but without Xavi Barca would lose their primary fulcrum, and the most artful of their highly impressive repertoire. Xavi is often supplies the pass before the killer ball, the pass that opens a chasm in the opponents defensive shield and batters the psychology of those who so desperately try to prevent Barca from running away with the game. Often overlooked for the most prestigious of awards, much like his aforementioned compatriots (excluding Zidane), Xavi is still feared and revered by fans, journalists, and players alike the world over. On his day, nobody can stop him, even a marvellous player like Andrea Pirlo, who was totally upstaged by Xavi in the Euro 2012 Final. Impossible to mark, combined with a footballing brain that works half a second before of any of his opponents, the little man is still one of the greats of the modern game.