Just a few weeks have passed since Xavi Hernandez decided to change his mind and stay at Barcelona after Joan Laporta convinced the illustrious midfield player that success was imminent.
The coach hasn’t exactly had the board’s complete support after that announcement, and judging by the hints left in the transcript, it seems that some weren’t exactly eager to hold onto Xavi.
A few remarks made by the manager before Barca’s victory over Almeria have suddenly created a very difficult situation within the club, one that may result in Xavi’s dismissal at the end of the current campaign or sooner.
Barcelona may fire Xavi.
“The past twenty-four hours at Barcelona have been an amazing, amazing story. Fabrizio Romano told CaughtOffside for his exclusive Daily Briefing, “Something truly weird already happened since the president, Joan Laporta, and the sports director, Deco, didn’t travel with the club to Almeria.
“Why? Laporta was extremely enraged with Xavi for a number of reasons, but two stood out above the others. First, the club’s financial predicament caught the president off guard when Xavi disclosed in the pre-game news conference that it’s really hard to take significant action right now. Laporta always thought Xavi would back the team and keep things under wraps.
“Secondly, Xavi’s statement that Vitor Roque was supposed to visit the club in the summer rather than January infuriated Laporta and other clubgoers. that Xavi was the one who first desired to close the transaction.
There’s a risk that Xavi and Barca will part ways because of the extremely complex position at the club, I should add.
Xavi will likely argue that he was only answering a reporter’s inquiry, but it’s obvious from Laporta’s outrage that he thought any comments about the club’s financial status should be kept confidential.
It’s unclear at this time if this is because he is attempting to make sure a particular message reaches the club’s impatient fan base when the opposite is actually true, but either way, it’s just another crisis that the team can do without.
Barcelona won’t have any trophies at the end of the season, and it’s reasonable to claim that they haven’t played up to par at times, particularly in the important games. Xavi had managed to rack up two red cards and twenty-two yellow cards in his comparatively short time as the first team’s manager, suggesting that he might not be prepared for the head coach position at the team of his dreams.
That his teammates suffer from the perception that he is a loose cannon who is incapable of handling pressure.
Whatever the problem, there’s no denying that the club is experiencing a major development.