Xavi might not be 'ready' for Barcelona managerial role, but will be helped by lowered expectations

FC Barcelona club legend Xavi Hernandez is finally the manager of the side, but the club he returns to is very different to the one he left.

Xavi Hernandez in a file photo. (Image: Twitter)
By Shayne Dias | Nov 6, 2021 | 5 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

After what feels like forever, the worst kept secret in world football is now out. Xavi Hernandez, an icon and legend at FC Barcelona, is back at the club – this time as manager to replace the departed Ronald Koeman.

The process was a fairly long drawn-out one. Xavi was contracted to Qatar club Al-Sadd, meaning Barcelona needed to pay to get him out of his contract. Given the precarious finances of the club, not to mention the fee they owe Koeman, this was easier said than done.

Reports suggest Xavi paid a portion of the clause himself, such was his keenness to take the job. This has little to do with Al-Sadd; he was doing well at the Qatar Stars League (QSL) side but he left only because Barcelona was too hard to turn down.

Another reason the process took so long was due to president Joan Laporta’s reservations over the former midfielder. This has little to do with his inexperienced coaching career, although that might have been a factor.

However, Xavi’s links to Victor Font – a man who contested but lost the presedential elections to Laporta – also reportedly played a part.

But the call has now been made, and Barcelona are welcoming back a club legend to the managerial post. Of course, given the realities of Barcelona as we speak, many will argue the hard part begins now.

Xavi was always destined to get the managerial job one day. However, circumstances at the club means the call came way before anyone expected it to happen.

Xavi – still a relative novice at managerial level

Recent years has seen a trend of top clubs hand the managerial reigns to club legends. Manchester United appointed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, first on an interim then a permanent basis.

Chelsea brought in Frank Lampard, Mikel Arteta got the Arsenal gig and Andrea Pirlo managed Juventus for a season. The results of this little trend have been mixed, to say the least.

Lampard and Pirlo both got the sack, the former after a season and a half and the latter after a season. Solskjaer remains in charge at United, although there are doubts over his ability to take the club to the next level.

The same can be said about Arteta who, despite winning an FA Cup in 2020, is yet to truly stamp his authority on the club. Crucially, both still remain in a job for the time being.

At first glance, Xavi can be seen as a similar appointment. His time at Al-Sadd was successful and his managerial record reads as such: 97 games in charge with 64 wins, 16 draws and 17 losses.

He also won 7 trophies during his time at the club. However, it goes without saying that the Qatar domestic scene is world’s away from the elite of European football.

As such, the legendary former midfielder hasn’t quite had the chance to test himself at the top level. To make things worse, his first chance at doing so comes at the very top of the game. It is, by no means, an ideal situation for him, even keeping in mind his obvious connections to the club.

But again, the situation is hardly an ideal one for Barcelona either.

Barca turmoil works in Xavi’s favour

As things stand, the club are 9th in La Liga and just about ekeing through to the Champions League knockouts. The squad is a hotchpotch mess; to make things worse, the club do not have the money to quickly fix things.

The coronavirus pandemic compounded matters, but Barca’s financial situation was treacherous even before then. It’s not the kind of mess any manager wants to inherit.

But it is the exact thing that might buy Xavi time to put his imprint on the team. And he does have certain advantages over predecessor Koeman.

The Dutchman, despite being coached in the ways of Johan Cruyff, was by no means a Cruyffian in terms of footballing ideology. None of his club jobs have seen him gain a reputation for playing free-flowing, attacking football.

And it was worse at Barcelona. Koeman, acutely aware that the managerial yardstick is results, deserted any notions of a style of play. Hence the push to sign Luuk de Jong. Hence sticking Gerard Pique up front and lobbing long balls.

Barcelona fans would have accepted this – begudgingly, but still – had results been okay. But Barca’s results went into a nosedive almost as quickly as the dedication to Cruyffian ideals did.

Laporta is, by all means, a Cruyffian idealist. Hence the appointment of son Jordi on an advisorial role. And hence the push for Xavi – someone coached in the very ideals Cruyff held to high standards. But also crucially someone who wants to play the exact same way.

Xavi’s Al-Sadd side played some attractive football and he would be keen to impose that on the current Barca side. At the very least, this will keep the more hardcore fans and socios onside; even if they lose, at least they aren’t playing route one football.

But will Barca’s financial situation improve?

Yes. It won’t be an easy route and will involve foregoing sweeping success for at least the short-term. But the current board are at least acknowledging the need to make changes and get the club’s finances on track.

The return of matchday revenue will help in the short term, but Barca’s cash flow issues run deeper. There is a significant need to refresh the squad, both with selling and buying players.

There’s also the fact that Barca will have to shift the higher earners on a priority basis; something that is easier said than done. But it will have to happen at some point.

It is only through the sale of players that they will get the money needed to tide through in the short-term. And only then can they think of building for the long-term.

The good thing is that none of this has to do with the manager. Xavi’s main job at this point will be to implement a style of play and keep the club in the Top 4. Anything else is a bonus.

The financial mess will take time to clear up, and Xavi will play a minimalistic role in that job. Which means that, in theory, he can focus on what he is best equipped to do: coach the players and bring back a football identity.

In an ideal world, he would not have to work around this mess. But it is this very mess that might ensure he doesn’t become another managerial casualty, instead rebuilding the club he still holds close to his heart.





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