Xavi took over as Barcelona head coach in November 2021 following leaving Al-Sadd in Qatar. The truncated season turned out to be encouraging, and then he won La Liga with the team in his first full season, in 2022-2023. However, the international cup participation was not successful.
In the fall of 2023, Barça improved in this respect compared to previous years, but they might not compete with Real Madrid in the championship. After the King’s Cup did not turn out as hoped either – Bilbao was the last stop in the quarter-finals – the Champions League remained the only series where it might have been successful. The media (obviously meaning primarily Spanish) often criticized Xavi and the team for his performance.
This was the most important reason why in January, following the 5-3 home defeat once morest Villarreal, the coach announced that he and his staff did not wish to fulfill their contract, which was extended until 2025, and that he would leave in the summer of 2024. At the time, Xavi said that a big stone fell from his heart following the announcement, he felt more liberated. He also criticized the club’s leaders, who, according to him, did not stand by him and did not support him sufficiently amid the media attacks. After his decision, it was as if the team was liberated, 13 unbeaten matches followed, with only three draws in between.
However, on Tuesday of last week, Barcelona was eliminated from the Champions League with a home defeat once morest PSG, and then on Sunday they lost El Clásico once morest Real Madrid. Even the most daring planners believed that the last ray of hope for the title defense had faded, that Real Madrid’s 11-point advantage was unattainable. Xavi, like the leaders of the club, blamed both defeats on the referees, they were partly dissatisfied with the performance of István Kovács, and partly with the fact that the referee Lamine Yamal did not award a goal at the Bernabéu, even though Andrej Lunyin scraped the ball from beyond the goal line.
The situation prompted Xavi to come up with new ideas. On Wednesday, he met with Joan Laporta at the club president’s house, with the intention of telling her that he still wanted to stay. According to El Mundo Deportivo, although the president was inclined to let Xavi stay, there were points of contention. As it turned out, Xavi expected to receive the amount due for the last year (including the money of his staff) of around 10 million euros if he left. Disbursing this would have been considered a particularly friendly gesture, given that he had decided not to work next season.
The meeting was attended by Deco, sporting director, vice-president Rafa Yuste and Laporta’s ex-brother-in-law Alejandro Echevarria. They finally agreed to continue, subject to certain conditions.
According to Sport Barcelona, the key question was Barcelona’s plans for next season. Deco gave no promise and especially no guarantee that the club would strengthen the squad as Xavi wanted. At the same time, he promised that they would try to manage the not-so-rosy financial situation in such a way that they would not have to sell key players and would not have to decide on salary cuts. This is somewhat contradicted by the fact that, according to Sport’s information, only Cubarsí, Lamine Yamal, Gavi, Pedri and the new big promise, the 19-year-old Senegalese Mika Faye, are untouchable, the others – from Ter Stegen to Lewandowski – can be taken if there is a suitable offer.
El Mundo Deportivo also learned that the managers have made Xavi a condition that he has to make two changes to his staff: replace his brother Oscar Hernandez and the fitness coach.
According to the agreement, Xavi will remain at the head of the team until 2025. If the results do not improve, then the club will try to win a coach previously associated with Barcelona, whose contract with his current employer will expire. Illustrious names fall into this category: Pep Guardiola, Luis Enrique and Mikel Arteta.
Joan Laporta and Xavi held a joint press conference on Thursday followingnoon, where the president also announced the club legend’s stay. As he said, during their meeting on Wednesday, Xavin saw the confidence and ambition, and this might be a win for Barca. “Stability is the key to success,” declared the club’s manager, who indicated that Xavi’s dedication to FC Barcelona was unquestionable. Laporta stated that the club management has full confidence in the coach and is convinced that this will be a winning project.
“I am a Barcelona fan, a dedicated person of the club, and this is the most important thing right now,” Xavi said, adding that an agreement was reached in three minutes on Wednesday, and that he feels that the club management, the team and the fan base are behind him. As he put it, many people stopped him on the street to consider his decision. “I don’t think this project is over, even if we don’t win anything this season,” he added.
The players have already been informed of the decision, and according to Laporta, he saw the best training session of the season followingwards. Xavi, on the other hand, denied the news that he had tied his stay to strengthening the squad with the players he selected. The president indicated that the Spanish league may soon allow the incoming funds to be used for signing one-on-one players, so it will be easier to confirm key people. (According to previous news, Xavi insisted on acquiring a defensive midfielder and Bernardo Silva, who had left Manchester City, and that the club would not sell his key players.) The coach also stated that there will be no changes in his staff.
Joan Laporta claimed that he had kept his word and that they did not look for a coach until Xavi made a final decision. “I will stay, no matter how the end of the season turns out, this will not happen once more,” promised the manager.