Iniesta says his old teammate Xavi is 'the perfect fit' for the Nou Camp hotseat

Barcelona icon Andres Iniesta has hailed Xavi Hernandez as the 'perfect fit' for the Catalans.

The club finally announced the appointment of club legend Xavi as the new manager after the Spaniard left Qatari side Al-Sadd last week.

Xavi signed a two-and-a-half year deal and taking over from Ronald Koeman, who was sacked following Barca's abject defeat to minnows Rayo Vallecano last month, which left the Catalan giants sitting miserable in ninth place in the league.

Iniesta played alongside the new Blaugrana boss at the Nou Camp and the duo enjoyed great success in the engine room from 2002 to 2015, racking up eight LaLiga titles and four Champions Leagues.

Now Iniesta insists that his old team-mate is prepared for his return to Barcelona in the hotseat as he is 'ready to face this challenge'.

'He's prepared for this, and he's been preparing and he's trained', in an interview BeIN Sports, via Marca.

'He's a perfect fit, that's for sure. Not just because of what he knows about the club, but because he's prepared for it.

'That's important, not just because of what he represents as player, but as a coach. He is ready to face this challenge.

'I wish him all the luck in the world and I am convinced he will be fine because he's ready and very excited for the challenge.'

Xavi's first game in the dugout will be after the international break in the derby against Espanyol on November 20.

Barcelona are in an unprecedented crisis: they are over £1billion in debt due to the devastating effects of the coronavirus pandemic and the scale of Xavi's task is enormous, especially for a rookie manager.

But Barca will hope that he can salvage their sinking ship as they limp from one poor result to another, most recently a 3-3 draw to Celta Vigo.

Al-Sadd had put up a fight to keep Xavi, who has won the league title in Qatar as a coach, as well as six cup competitions in just two seasons.

But he made a public plea to the club to allow him to fulfil his dream of managing his boyhood club.