Andoni Zubizarreta: 'Xavi is still a Barcelona player'

Barcelona sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta has insisted that Xavi has not yet decided whether to depart the Catalan outfit this summer.

The experienced Spaniard has been strongly linked with a move away from the club in recent months, with a transfer to Qatar believed to be on the cards.

However, Zubizarreta has said that, for now, Xavi remains a Barcelona player.

"We are talking permanently with Xavi, we spoke to him before he went to the World Cup. He also wants the time to think, that's Xavi Hernandez, he's got every right to analyse things as he wants to do," Zubizarreta told reporters.

"He's our player, when he comes back from his holidays we'll sit down and we'll talk again. Any news he gives us will be good. If he decides to stay that will be fantastic news, if he decides that it might be the time to retire then we will treat that as well as we can.

"We are not talking any old player, we're talking about somebody who is very special. We've been very open with Xavi in our conversations recently, we've been very transparent about things. If Xavi stays here he'll be competing with others for a place in the team, but if Xavi decides to explore other options we will respect that."

Xavi has been with Barca since 1991.