FC Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez revealed one of his club’s plans in the transfer market ahead of a vital clash with Girona on Saturday.
The two Catalans teams face off on with second place in La Liga on the line. Finishing in the position doesn’t just bring automatic qualification to the Champions League, but also the right to contest the Spanish Cup at the turn of 2025 and a considerable payday.
Girona has of course been an unlikely contender this term which topped the table at various points of the campaign and also beat both Barca and Atletico Madrid which were all firsts in its history.
Eric Garcia has been one of Michel’s best players on loan from Barca, and Xavi confirmed his team’s plans for the center back next season.
“”He already had room [in the squad] this year [i.e. this season], it wasn’t our intention for him to leave, I said it at the time. He could have helped us. The idea is that he will come back, yes,” Xavi said when asked about the former La Masia pupil.
Speaking more directly about Saturday’s opponent, Xavi congratulated Michel and his players and said that it is “a source of pride for Catalan football that Girona is in the Champions League competing with the best.”
“It’s fantastic the level they’ve shown,” he added.
When asked about which Girona stars would be starters in his team, though, Xavi couldn’t be as firm.
“I don’t know if they would be starters here. The context changes completely in a big team like Barca,” he said.
“There are players who perform at a high level at Girona, with less pressure. It’s not the same, it’s obvious, we’ve seen it in different players. I don’t know what to tell you. They have high-level players, they’ve shown that.”
Though there is so much on the line, Xavi did not fall into the common Spanish football trope of saying that tomorrow’s match is a “final”.
“It’s not a final, but we approach it as something very, very important. Whatever happens won’t be definitive, but it’s very important for us. It got away from us on the first time around,” Xavi stated, with reference to a 4-2 loss to Girona at the Montjuic Stadium back in December.