Joan Laporta admitted that he would have axed any other manager in current circumstances if they were not a club legend like Xavi Hernandez.
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Xavi announced his summer exit after losing to VillarrealBarca struggling for form in La LigaLaporta sent stern warning to underfire managerWHAT HAPPENED?
January had been a cruel month for Barcelona. They were thrashed 4-1 by Real Madrid in the Supercopa de Espana and were also knocked out of the Copa del Rey by a dominant Athletic Club in extra time. The 5-3 defeat to Villarreal was the final nail in the coffin that forced Xavi to announce his impending departure from the club. However, Laporta hinted that he could have already been fired if he wasn't a club legend.
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When asked if there is any possibility of sacking Xavi before June, Laporta said: “If it’s down to me, I won’t fire Xavi. He does not deserve that. He truly believes in the formula we have set up until the end of the season.
“Barca won’t give up in La Liga or the Champions League and we have a squad good enough to compete and win against Napoli. We don’t doubt how involved the management and players are. If it wasn’t Xavi, I would have already fired the manager in this situation.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Laporta further revealed that the club has already started a managerial search to find Xavi's replacement.
“Deco is working on it; I’ve delegated this task to him,” he said. “I trust Xavi for the remainder of the season.”
DID YOU KNOW?
Xavi made 767 appearances for the club as a player, second only to Lionel Messi. During his playing career, he secured 15 major trophies with Barcelona. In November 2021, Xavi took on the role of head coach, succeeding Ronald Koeman. In his inaugural full season, he led Barcelona to clinch the La Liga title.
While the team successfully reached the Champions League knockout stages in the current season, after falling short in the previous two campaigns, they face a stern challenge against Napoli in the round of 16.
