Barcelona sack coach Xavi Hernandez

BARCELONA – Barcelona sacked coach Xavi Hernandez on May 24 after the Catalan giants failed to win a trophy this season, just weeks since he and club president Joan Laporta

agreed that he would stay in the post.

Xavi will take charge of the team’s final La Liga match on May 26 at Sevilla before departing.

“Barcelona president Joan Laporta has told Xavi Hernandez he will not continue as coach for the 2024-25 season,” said a club statement.

“Barcelona want to thank Xavi for his work as coach, which adds to his unmatchable career as a player and the captain of the first team, and wish him all the best in the future.

“In the coming days, Barcelona will reveal the new coaching structure for the first-team staff.”

Former Bayern Munich and Germany coach Hansi Flick is heavily tipped to be the new head coach.

In January, Xavi said he would leave at the end of the season but, after a run of strong form, he and Laporta agreed in April he would stay for the next campaign, with his contract expiring in June 2025.

However, the situation quickly changed with Spanish media reporting Laporta was angered by Xavi’s comments suggesting it was hard for the financially hamstrung club to compete with Real Madrid and other elite European sides.

Barcelona won La Liga last season but surrendered their title to rivals Real in the current campaign. They were knocked out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals by Paris Saint-Germain, hammered by Real in the Spanish Super Cup final and lost to Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey last eight.

When Xavi, 44, made his U-turn to stay, it appeared he and Barcelona were remaining together in a marriage of convenience. Less than a month later Barcelona’s tempestuous president changed his mind.

Xavi, who was appointed in 2021, insisted over the past fortnight he was still looking forward to coaching the club next season and felt he had the confidence of Laporta.

As a player, he made 767 appearances for the Catalan club, behind only Lionel Messi, winning eight La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues among other trophies.

For years Xavi had insisted his dream was to coach Barcelona, but in January he said the job was “cruel” and took a toll on him mentally.

His likely replacement Flick, 59, has not coached since Germany sacked him in 2023 after a poor run of results.

The German previously steered Bayern to a treble in 2020, including an 8-2 thrashing of Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-finals. AFP