BARCELONA, SPAIN - JUNE 10: Coach Xavi Hernandez attends 'Campus Xavi Hernández by Santander' at Work Cafe on June 10, 2021 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Miquel Benitez/Getty Images)
The top candidates to replace Ronald Koeman at Barcelona
BARCELONA, SPAIN – SEPTEMBER 20: Head coach Ronald Koeman of FC Barcelona looks down during the La Liga Santander match between FC Barcelona and Granada CF at Camp Nou on September 20, 2021 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
Ronald Koeman’s future was sentenced after the whistle blew in yet another dismal performance where Barcelona drew 1-1, at home, against Granada.
The only reason the Dutchman is still going to be in charge in their upcoming match against Cadiz is simply because the club has not yet reached a consensus on who is going to be his replacement.
Immediately following the Granada match, a list containing five or six potential candidates began trickling down. That list has now been narrowed down to two.
Division between the Barcelona board and president Joan Laporta
The top two candidates to take over for Koeman are Belgium’s Roberto Martinez and former club legend Xavi Hernandez.
Xavi has been linked with the Barcelona job for quite a while now. He was approached back when Ernesto Valverde was in charge but declined the offer. He has not been shy about expressing his desire to become the next manager and recently was backed by former teammate Andres Iniesta when asked if he is ready for the role.
“I think so, yes,” Iniesta said. “if you ask me if I imagine Xavi on the Barca bench. Above all because he’s been preparing and training to coach Barca. He has the confidence to take on this challenge.”
Source: Sport
Xavi is the favorite among a majority of the Barcelona board as well as supporters. However, he is not the top option for Joan Laporta. The Barcelona president’s choice is Roberto Martinez.
https://twitter.com/ReshadRahman_/status/1440611700873461765
Laporta believes Xavi lacks experience and would first want to see him take over the Barça B team, something Xavi himself does not want.
Signing Martinez is going to be tricky if the Catalans decide to go that route. Not only would they have to pay Belgium but the manager himself may not want to come. He has the Nations League coming up as well as the World Cup.
He was asked abut the rumors linking him to Barcelona and played them down.
“Well as you can imagine there is nothing, nothing to comment for me,” Martinez said.
“When you lose three games the rumors are that you are going to lose your job. When things are going well, you are doing good results, the rumors will always be there, but it’s nothing for me to comment on at this point.”
Source: Eurosport
The situation at Barcelona is a delicate one and no manager with a reputation is going to look at the club as a preferred destination. It may be different with Xavi.
The former midfielder practices the same Barcelona style at his club Al Sadd and has had a decent amount of success. Martinez utilizes a different style with Belgium and it would go counter to one of Laporta’s decrees which is playing with a 4-3-3 system.
In any case, Barcelona need to make a decision quickly. After Koeman’s latest stunt where he read a statement and walked out of the press conference without taking any questions, the situation has surpassed that of untenable.
If they want a long-term solution, it makes more sense to go with Xavi. Apart from being a club legend, he will be given time by the supporters to rebuild Barcelona. Something someone like Martinez may not get.
