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Valverde, what was the drop that overflowed the glass? 1:35
(CNN) - After the exciting victory of Real Betis 4-3 over Barcelona in November 2018, midfielder Sergio Busquets gave the then coach of Betis, Quique Setién, his shirt with a personal message written on the back.
"For Quique, with appreciation and admiration for the way you see football," he said.
It remains the only defeat of Barcelona at the Camp Nou since September 2016 and many of the qualities that Setién's team showed that day are what convinced the Barcelona board that he was the man to replace Ernesto Valverde.
"Not even in my wildest dreams could I have imagined this," said the 61-year-old man at his first press conference. “I have to thank the club. I am excited about this challenge and this project.
“Yesterday I was walking next to the cows there in my town and today I am in the sports city of the Soccer Club Barcelona training the best players in the world. And in a huge team, I will never be able to improve. This is already the maximum. ”
This was said by Quique Setién, the new coach of Barcelona, in his presentation. Do you think it will do a good job? https://t.co/EvHn2W0jW5 pic.twitter.com/eDmsevse6o
- CNN in Spanish (@CNNEE) January 14, 2020
Setien is a confessed disciple of Johan Cruyff, the legendary coach who gave Barcelona his football identity.
Two captivating years in Andalusia were marked by a remarkable 5-3 victory over the bitter rival of the city of Seville, two victories against Real Madrid and that surprising defeat to Barcelona.
These victories helped him become the first coach to win both Real Madrid and Barcelona in the same season since 2003.
But when the team was not at its best, Setien was able to mold Betis into a solid and cohesive unit that would finally end in sixth place in La Liga.
FOOTBALL 🙌😀 # DíaDeBetis # BarçaRealBetis pic.twitter.com/hKeRcg5zrn
- Real Betis Balompié 🌴💚 (@RealBetis) November 11, 2018
His second season in charge was frustrating, as the club languished for much of the lower half of the table and failed to take advantage of the success of the previous period.
On the last day of the season, Setién's team won a 2-0 victory against Real Madrid to secure a tenth place, but was fired in a bitter way only an hour later.
Many Barcelona fans will have a break with Setién, as they were frustrated with the pragmatic football style of Valverde, despite the considerable success he had in his two and a half years in the club.
For a team with the history and tradition of Barcelona, the way victories are achieved is almost as important as the victories themselves.
"Setién: a coach with the DNA of Barça and 'in love' with Messi," wrote the Spanish newspaper Diario AS about his appointment.
"It's a luxury to have agreed with Messi," Setién said once, after an Argentine hat-trick condemned his Betis team to a 4-1 loss. "Messi is the best player I've ever seen."
The Barcelona-based Sport newspaper asks: "Who is Quique Setién, a man in love with Barça and Cruyff?"
The report focuses on the coach's other passion, a sport that helps him think tactically about football.
"He could have been a great chess champion," he says. "In fact, he played international competitions in this discipline, coming to play simultaneously with (former world champions) Kasparov and Karpov."
In fact, Setién once admitted that he often prefers to play chess than watch football.
It is no secret that Setién was not Barcelona's first option to replace Valverde.
The club made a widely publicized approach to the former midfielder and club legend Xavi Hernández, currently in his first managerial position with the Qatari team Al Sadd, but was rejected and reports suggest that Tottenham's technician, Mauricio Pochettino, was being considered, although the Argentine said earlier that he would never drive Barcelona given his ties with the rival club Espanyol.
Despite the widely perceived ineptitude of the current board in the way Valverde was fired, he could have reached the right option in Setién, albeit indirectly.
Barcelona
