Barcelona Honors Xavi With Stirring Tribute To Departing Captain (Video)

Barcelona is ready to send off Xavi in style.

Xavi announced Thursday he’ll leave Barcelona and join Qatari club Al Sadd at the end of the 2014-15 season, according to The BBC. Xavi will end his 17-year Barcelona career as one of the best players it or any other Spanish soccer club has ever produced.

[tweet https://twitter.com/ESPNFC/status/601488919520116736 align=’center’]

[tweet https://twitter.com/ChampionsLeague/status/601522595335413760 align=’center’]

Barcelona’s in-house television station produced a highlight video in honor of its departing captain.

Xavi joined Barcelona when he was just 11 years old. He rose through Barcelona’s youth system and made his first-team debut in 1998. Xavi went on to help Barcelona win eight La Liga (Spanish first division) titles and three UEFA Champions League crowns among its many other trophies.

Xavi also played 133 times for Spain’s national team, leading his country to victory at the 2008 and 2012 UEFA European Championships as well as the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

“I couldn’t have had a better career,” Xavi said at a press conference, according to the BBC. “It was a tough decision.”

Xavi also will become an ambassador for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar while also working on his coaching certifications.

Xavi, an undisputed master of the art of passing, has important business to tend to before he leaves his boyhood club. Barcelona will play in both the Copa del Rey (Spanish Cup) and Champions League finals in the coming weeks before heading to the Middle East for his swansong.

[tweet https://twitter.com/FCBarcelona/status/601353120246018048 align=’center’]