It’s been made official that Xavi would be leaving his role as Barcelona manager at the end of the season after failing to repeat his domestic heroics from last season when he guided the Blaugrana to domestic glory by winning the La Liga. The former Barcelona midfielder has also cut a frustrating figure in the Barcelona dugout.
The lack of excitement and brilliance by his team ultimately led to his decision to step down, leading to a wild guess of who would take over the falling club from the 24/25 season. Hansi Flick is one of the names on the sheet, and an inside report now suggests the treble-winning manager with Bayern Munich is brushing up on his Spanish ahead of a potential summer move to Camp Nou.
Hansi Flick reportedly learning Spanish for the Barcelona job
Hansi Flick could be preparing for a return to management a few months after being sacked by the Germany national team following the humiliating 4-1 defeat at the hands of Japan, with the German being heavily linked with a move to Barcelona to replace the departing Xavi at the end of the current club season.
Xavi had been hinting he could leave the club if he felt he could no longer inspire his team to glory, and he stuck with his words a few weeks ago, announcing his imminent departure at the end of the season after back-to-back domestic defeats, first in the Copa Del Rey at the hands of Athletic Club, then in La Liga in a 5-3 loss to Villareal.
Several names have since been linked to replace Xavi, but the latest one is former Germany national team and Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick,who is reportedly learning Spanish, as reports of a summer switch to Barcelona grow stronger.
The German won the treble with Bayern Munich in 2020 after defeating PSG in the final of the UCL, with a couple of domestic titles to go with it. At some point in his Bayern Munich career, Flick had one of the highest winning rates, with his number standing at 83% and a goal average of 3.0 per game. Sadly, Hansi Flick left the club in 2021 to become the Germany national team’s head coach, a move that proved to be a total failure, and he was sacked after a 4-1 defeat to Japan last September.
Top candidates to succeed Xavi at Barcelona
Xavi’s decision to step down as Barcelona coach wasn’t surprising, as he had always hinted it. It came just a few hours after Jurgen Klopp also announced he would be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season because he doesn’t have the energy to carry on anymore.
Several names have now been linked to the Barcelona job, including Mikel Arteta, Thiago Motta, and Andoni Iraola. They are all young managers who have been mentioned in the past few weeks. However, Arteta has distanced himself from the rumors suggesting that he may leave Arsenal to join Barcelona at the end of the season.
Veteran managers Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte, and Zinedine Zidane are also available, as they’re all out of jobs, with Mourinho recently losing his job at Roma a few weeks ago. Barcelona could also opt for Michel, who’s working wonders at Girona, challenging the status quo in La Liga by leading his team to an unlikely title challenge in Spain.
Whoever Laporta decides to choose, he must get it right. The club has spent too much money in the past few seasons on incoming transfers not to achieve corresponding success on the pitch.
