Barcelona have advanced to the next stage of their hiring process for next season’s manager.
The LaLiga side were rocked by Xavi announcing his planned departure on January 27, but now appear to have things in order ahead of his June 30th exit, according to Mundo Deportivo.
With finances strapped and a likely trophyless season looming, president Joan Laporta and sporting director Deco will have to nail their next appointment.
With that in mind, their first choice is in fact to keep Xavi next season.
Both Deco and Laporta have publically said they want Xavi to stay, but it’s expected that only a title, LaLiga or the Champions League, would convince him to reverse his decision.
If Xavi doesn’t continue, the first choice would be Luis Enrique, who last managed the club from 2014 to 2017, winning a European treble.
The main stumbling block is that the Spaniard has a year left on his PSG contract, but just a week ago he admitted he would like to return to his former side at some point in the future.
The easy option if the first two fail is Hansi Flick, who is currently unemployed and almost certainly won’t say no.
A European treble winner with Bayern Munich in 2020, it’s understood that Laporta is keen on the German option, and has had positive talks with agent Pini Zahavi who manages a number of the club’s players.
If all else fails, ready to make the jump up is Barca B manager Rafa Marquez, who is already impressing with the second team.
But as Laporta most recently said: “We are not going to touch anything until Xavi makes his decision.”
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