I seen quite a few games from Al Sadd.

I would guess they didn't bother watching to much. Xavi teams shape and roles, from an outsider point of view, change a lot. When he plays 3 ATB, the wide players are often the most advanced players in the team. The guy with an afro often plays the left side role in that setup and he would be a striker in the eyes of most.

He changes quite a bit, this season the team is less expansive and looks to control the tempo much more. Ayew being fat, and carzola age seem to factor. Specially when we plays with 40 year old Tabata, that is still quite good for that level. Pedro Miguel that plays at wither right back or center back pushes high quite often when he plays at center back. And the Korean center back/defensive mid (he left the club already) was very much a playmaker.

So what to expect, tactical flexibility and freedom. Those seem to be the major points to his game. The fast counters and quick first touch passes that we see in the montages don't happen often.

He is a solid manager and we will see what will come.