Agencies/Doha
As speculation swirled that he was about to return to Barcelona, Xavi Hernandez insisted on Thursday that he was thinking only of his current job, coaching Qatar champions Al Sadd. "I am currently focused on my work with Al Sadd, and I cannot talk about anything else," Xavi told a press conference ahead tomorrow's match against Al Ahli in the QNB Stars League.
Barcelona fired coach Ronald Koeman after losing 1-0 at Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday to stay ninth in La Liga, six points behind the leaders. Spanish media reported that Barca president Joan Laporta was in talks with Xavi about the vacant position yesterday morning. Barca's B team coach Sergi Barjuan was put in temporary charge following the sacking of Koeman.
Barca have three games to negotiate before the international break, against Alaves and Celta Vigo in La Liga, as well as a crucial Champions League trip to Dynamo Kiev in between. Barca had won only two of their last seven league games under Koeman, a run that included losing to Real Madrid in Sunday's Clasico at Camp Nou.
A poor start to the season has raised the possibility of the team even failing to qualify for next season's Champions League, which would have enormous consequences for the club's already dire financial situation. The club is 1.35 billion euros in debt and had to watch Lione Messi join PSG in August after failing to renew the Argentine's contract. Other key players like Antoine Griezmann also departed without being adequately replaced as Sergio Aguero and Memphis Depay both arrived on free transfers and Luuk de Jong came from Sevilla on loan.
Koeman spent six years at Barcelona as a player and is considered a club legend after scoring the winning goal in the 1992 European Cup final against Sampdoria. He was appointed coach by Barca's previous president Josep Maria Bartomeu in August 2020 and enjoyed some success in his first season, winning the Copa del Rey and bringing a disillusioned Lionel Messi back onside.
But a disappointing finish in La Liga and a heavy defeat by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League last 16 cast doubt over Koeman's ability to navigate the biggest games, a criticism that was aimed at him again last weekend following the loss to Real Madrid. Laporta was re-elected as president in March and while he allowed Koeman to continue as coach, there was never much trust between the pair.
Xavi is one of the club's greatest ever players and there is huge excitement about his potential as a coach, because of his play in midfield in the iconic Barca team managed by Pep Guardiola. The 41-year-old is from the suburbs of Barcelona, came through the famed youth system and played 17 seasons and more than 750 games for the club before leaving for Qatar in 2019.
After playing four seasons for Al Sadd, he took over as manager in 2019 and led them to a league title last season. They won the Amir Cup last week beating Al Rayyan on penalties in the final. Al Sadd have won all seven of their league games this season to lead the table.
Meanwhile, Xavi his players cannot relax and hoped Sadd can the unbeaten run. The Wolves are top of the table with 18 points and are yet to lose this season. “It’s a very important game and Al-Ahli will be a strong opponent for us, because they need to collect more points. They are a good team that deserves a better place in the table,” he said.
“We cannot relax. We made some mistakes in the previous matches. Three points against Al Ahli will be very important before we face Al Duhail in Round 9. All the upcoming matches are strong and difficult. We hope to continue unbeaten at the top of the table. All the matches are difficult, as everyone gives their best against us. We will make sure that all our players are ready to play the match.”
Regarding the team’s readiness, he said: “We are going through a good period after the victory over Umm Salal, and we cannot relax because Al Ahli is a good team with great players, and therefore it will be very difficult to face them. But we are Sadd and we always aim to win.”