Outgoing FC Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez is attracting interest from Saudi Arabia according to SPORT.
The Catalan dramatically announced his departure from the Barca dugout on Saturday following a crippling 5-3 loss to Villarreal at the Montjuic Stadium that practically ended hopes of retaining the La Liga title.
“I want to announce that on June 30, I will not continue as the coach. We have been talking with the president (Joan Laporta), Rafa Yuste, Alejando Echevarria, (Sporting director) Deco, and the staff, and we believe that the situation deserves a change in direction,” Xavi explained at the start of his post-match press conference.
“As a Culer, I cannot allow this situation. The club needs a change in dynamics, and this will free up the players. We play with too much tension,” he then stressed.
The pressure and scrutiny that comes from the “entorno” environment surrounding the club, and especially the media, has clearly taken its toll on a figure that was ice cool on the pitch as Barca’s number 4.
Xavi sounded bitter when saying that there will “never” be a Sir Alex Ferguson at Camp Nou, or rather the Montjuic Stadium at the moment – i.e. someone that stays in the hotseat almost three decades and is allowed to wade through moments of difficulty to continue at the helm.
The 44-year-old looks like a man that might take a sabbatical and step away from the game for a spell, after the “toxicity” coming from the entorno started to stress him and affect his family and personal life according to The Athletic.
Still, when he is ready, Xavi could continue his career outside of Europe where he will probably be more handsomely paid than at cash-strapped Barca.
Thanks to his years spent at Al-Sadd, Xavi always has the doors of Qatar open to him SPORT reports.
Additionally, though, the daily newspaper writes that his name is starting to attract interest from Saudi Arabia, which is as keen as ever to boost its profile ahead of hosting the 2030 World Cup through bringing big stars possible to its Kingdom.
In recent times, Jose Mourinho has been linked with a move to the Pro League while Marcelo Gallardo decided to head straight there as opposed to testing his ability on the Old Continent after dominating South America.