Xavi suggests that Barcelona's effort levels have changed after the decision to quit

Xavi suggested that the Barcelona players have contributed a lot since he announced that he will leave the club in January.

The Spaniard has voiced his desire to step down as manager after a string of poor results, saying his work was “not recognized enough” and that constant neglect had led to a “breakdown”.

Barcelona's fortunes have changed dramatically in the last three months, although they were recently knocked out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage after losing to Paris Saint-Germain.

Xavi was under pressure to reverse his decision after a long unbeaten run in La Liga and finally resigned last week, agreeing to stay on as Barca manager until the end of his contract.

Speaking after the 4-2 win over Valencia in La Liga – a game which saw striker Robert Lewandowski score a second-half hat-trick – Xavi admitted that he decided to stop motivating Barcelona's players, who may not have given enough in the opening months of the season.

“We are trying to find them by force. It is the history of this club,” said Xavi. “My decision to say goodbye was what I meant to do, maybe they would have given more.

“It was like that. I think at Montjuïc and Bernabeu we deserved more [against PSG and Real Madrid].

He continued about his current feelings: “I'm very good, I explained the other day in a natural way. In January I felt guilty about the bad results and I thought the best thing was to step back.

'However, I saw the trust of the president of Deco, of the club, especially in the football players, which is important. Barca, above all. It's very emotional. Catalans and Cules are like that. Sometimes we do good and sometimes we all screw it up. I felt the support of the team, Deco and the players.”

Barcelona's win saw them leapfrog Girona into second place in La Liga, ahead of Saturday's tough clash between the two, with the title handed to arch-rivals Real Madrid to prevent a dramatic collapse of the season for Carlo Ancelotti's side.

READ THE LATEST BARCELONA NEWS, FOLLOW THE CUTS AND GOSSIP