Laporta confident of new Xavi deal

Barcelona president Joan Laporta remains confident that midfielder Xavi will sign a contract extension with the club.

The 28-year-old Spaniard’s current deal expires in the summer of 2010.

He told the club’s official website: “Our technical secretary, Txiki Begiristain, is updating me regularly on how the negotiations are going and I believe that they are on the right track.

“I also think that things will go well because both parties want Xavi to continue with FC Barcelona.

“For us he is a key player and is an example to every youngster that we have in the youth ranks.

“He is one more example of how Barca promote their players from within and shows that with hard work and determination, anyone can make it into the first-team and become renowned in the game.

“I think that Xavi only has Barca as an option at the moment.

“He knows that we will do everything that we can and perhaps even a little bit more, because we are talking about one of our own youth team products.”

[Source: FCBarcelona.com]