Xavi and the other frontrunners for the Barcelona job as Koeman is shown the exit door
It's been long coming and the hour finally arrived after Barcelona lost to Rayo Vallecano for the first time in 19 years. After the Clasico loss on Sunday, the hope of a return to winning ways was dealt a bow by Radamel Falcao on the half-hour mark.
Memphis Depay missed a second half penalty while Pablo Gavi missed a last minute chance to restore parity as the host held on for a famous win, a win that proved Koeman's last game in charge at the club.
Few hours after the defeat, the club confirmed the Dutchman's dismissal in an official statement that reads; “FC Barcelona has relieved Ronald Koeman of his duties as first team coach. The president of the Club, Joan Laporta, informed him of the decision after the defeat against Rayo Vallecano. Ronald Koeman will say goodbye to the squad on Thursday at the Ciutat Esportiva.”
“FC Barcelona would like to thank him for his service to the Club and wishes him all the best in his professional career”.
Here, we take a look at the top three possible replacements for the manager.
3. Marcelino Garcia
A Barcelona kind of manager, Marcelino Garcia is doing a fantastic job with Athletic Club. Already famous for his successful spells at Villarreal and Valencia, he was the one that orchestrated the return of the Yellow Submarines to the top-flight while also helping them to European place finishes in their first seasons in the Laliga.
While with Villarreal, he fast tracked the club into one of the best in the league, despite just coming from the Laliga Two. He helped them to a semi final place in the Europa League where they lost to Liverpool in 2016.
His departure from the club has nothing to do with on field performance but disagreement with the board over captaincy issues. However, he was not meant to be out of job for long as he was already made the boss at Valencia under a year after.
In his second year, he helped Los Murcielagos to the Copa del Rey title, beating Barcelona in the final. That was Valencia's first trophy in 11 years. He was however dismissed few weeks into his third year at the club.
He was appointed the Manager at Athletic Club earlier this year and won the Spanish Super Cup, beating Barcelona 3-2 after extra time. However, he lost in the two Copa del Rey finals that were postponed because of Covid-19.
His management style makes him a good fit for the Barcelona job. The 55 year old is known for being obsessive over player weight and physical condition. He employs fast-moving 4-4-2 variants and demands his players to be ultra-fit.
His is also a manager that quickly transmit his style in the players and it is evidence with the current Bilbao side he took over January this year. Barcelona will need a manager to help them get their Tiki-Taka style in time and Marcelino Garcia could be the right man for that.
2. Erik Ten Hag
For a manager that has had successful spells at Utrecht as the Sporting Director after serving as manager at Bayern II and Go Ahead Eagles on Marc Overmas recommendation, Ten Hag will not only bring his managerial prowess but also his directorate experience, one Barcelona will be needing in their rebuild.
One of the most entertaining side in Europe. One might want to conclude the superiority of Ajax in the Eredivisie makes his thrive but his success extends to Europe. Currently leading their group in this season's Champions league, Ten Hag has led Ajax to the semi finals of the competition despite having to play with European heavyweights.
Into his fifth season with Ajax, the numbers are staggering for the manager both locally and in European competitions. The 51year old is averaging 2.436 points per game in the Eredivisie, 1.99 points per game in European competitions and 2.81 points per game in the domestic cups.
He has won five titles and have Ajax playing arguably the best football in Europe. It will be a good one to the hearing of Barcelona faithfuls that he was the manager in charge of Ajax when they humiliate their Clasico rivals in the 2018-19 Champions League round of 16 at the Bernabéu.
It might not be easy to lure him away from Ajax but given Barcelona relationship with the club, and if they can structure a good understanding and agreement with the man, then he might be willing to take over the seat vacated by his countryman.
1. Xavi Hernandez
Club legend and fans favourite, there is no doubt that Xavi is the candidate a good percentage of Barcelona fans want on the seat as the manager after the departure of Koeman. He was linked with the job before Koeman's appointment but choose to take his time and stay with Al Sadd.
The Spaniard has been with the Qatari club since 2019 and has won them the league, two Qatar Cups, two Qatar Super Cups, two Emir of Qatar Cups and one Qatari Stars Cup. He have them playing arguably the best football in Asia.
Under Xavi, Al Sadd are avering 2.47 points per league game and incredible 2.19 points per game in all competitions. He also has a winning percentage of 66. 32, numbers which are testament of good managerial setup.
Xavi is the outright favourite for the job as confirmed by several sources and it will be surprising to see anyone beat him to the job.
Afolabi Kehinde Hassan
Let xavi go for the job let's see how it goes
ReplyDeleteXavi is doing remarkably well with Al-Assad. However, that is not to say that he will succeed at Barcelona because the competition in European competition is quite different from the one in Qatar. Ten Haag on the other hand is a fantastic manager and a dream for any club. But, does Barcelona have money to spend on marquee players to make him competitive? This is a million pounds questions that is begging for answer. Fingers crossed
ReplyDeleteWe need Xavi Hernandez.His style of play in Al-Sadd is what we need in the Barca team
ReplyDelete