Barca have undergone a major facelift this summer with long-standing club stalwarts such as Frank Rijkaard, Ronaldinho, Deco and Edmilson being replaced by fresh blood on both the bench and in the team.

And life under new coach Pep Guardiola could hardly have started better, with Barca winning all seven of their pre-season matches - including a 4-0 Champions League qualifying rout of Wisla Krakow - and scoring a bucket-load of goals in the process.

With the start of the Primera Liga now less than a fortnight away, Xavi is reporting the mood at the club is sky-high.

"There is order and discipline. The new people that have come in have settled in very well. You notice this in training. At the moment, the feeling is unbeatable," he said.

Aside from Guardiola on the bench, Barca's other new faces include former Sevilla duo Dani Alves and Seydou Keita, young defenders Martin Caceres and Gerard Pique, and Belarus international Alexander Hleb.

They join a team who were the nearly-men of last season, reaching the semi-finals of both the Champions League and the Copa del Rey, and finishing third in the Primera Liga.

Xavi admits being close is not enough for a club like Barca though, insisting they need to be picking up trophies.

"We are obliged to obtain the maximum. Getting to the quarter and semi-finals is not good enough for Barca," he told El Mundo Deportivo.

"We need to win titles, although it is clear that football is about details. Last year, for example, we were better than Manchester United (in the Champions League) but were knocked out. They are very competitive and we have to know how to compete more than them."

Xavi should know better than most just what Barca's strengths and weaknesses are.

In the recent Champions League third qualifying round first leg against Wisla, the Spain midfielder played his 421st official game for the club, drawing him level with Guillermo Amor in third spot in the all-time list of appearances.

Only Migueli (548) and Carles Rexach (452) remain ahead of the 28-year-old Xavi, who admits he never expected he would achieve so much when he was first starting out.

"Not at all. At 17 and 18 you cannot imagine you would surpass people who for me were idols - Migueli, Amor, Guardiola, Zubizarreta... At times I cannot believe I have passed these people," said Xavi, who has won three league tiles, two Spanish Super Cups and the Champions League during his time at the Nou Camp.

"Although for me it is more important to continue feeling that you are useful to the team. The day that this is not the case, I will know it and then I will go."

Xavi's stock has risen steadily over the last few years, and has probably never been higher than after this summer's successful Euro 2008 campaign, when he was named as player of the tournament.

However, despite all that and Barca's recent troubles, the midfielder insists that leaving his home-town club has never crossed his mind.

"I have never of thought of saying 'I am going' because I know that this club has ups and downs and I always think that we are going to improve and that we are going to obtain more titles," he said.

"But I know that this club is very demanding, and that for a player who has spent many years in the team it is difficult to maintain their top level, and then I have to be professional and choose what is really best for me. At this moment, there is nowhere better for me.

"I spoke with (sporting director) Txiki (Begiristain) and the president and what I want is to stay here. I still feel useful and they have made it known to me that I am going to be an important piece of the plan here."