Outside the lines, 28.3/Photography: Vala system Video editing: Ziv Steiner
At the end of January, Xavi dropped a bombshell, announcing that he intended to leave Barcelona at the end of the season. Since that announcement, the champions recovered from their disappointing start to the season and qualified for the Champions League final, although their gap with La Liga leader Real Madrid is still high (8 points after 29 rounds).
When he announced his desire to leave, there were very few voices within the club that supported Xavi's retention. Now the story is completely different. According to "Sport", "Barcelona is not closing the door on the coach staying, and everything will be decided in the next three weeks". According to the same report, Xavi and the management will meet after the El Clasico against Real Madrid (April 21) to "analyze the pros and cons, although the coach has not yet reversed his decision to leave in the summer."
And yet - if he passes Paris Saint-Germain in the quarterfinals of the Champions League, and beats the Blancos to reopen the championship race, everything is open: "The club intends to convince Xavi to stay, and believe they are capable of doing so. Relegation from the Champions League and widening the gap with Real as much as possible Most likely, you will reduce the chances that he will stay."
Will he be convinced to stay? Xavi/GettyImages
The coach's biggest fan within the system is also the most powerful man of all - president Juan Laporte, who "is convinced that Xavi is the best option. The candidates to replace him are not 100 percent convincing, so Laporte is considering asking him to stay. He has already directed the The management team will not move forward in the search for a new coach until the end of April."
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