In the last few weeks, Xavi Hernandez and his players has been under pressure after a string of underwhelming performances, which continued on Saturday as they stumbled to a 1-1 draw against Rayo Vallecano at Vallecas.
Despite this, Xavi retains the full support of Joan Laporta, Deco and the rest of the Barcelona board. However, that has not stopped possible replacements being sounded out. Girona’s Michel Sanchez has already been linked, and another to be is now Real Sociedad gaffer Imanol Alguacil.
As per Sport, Laporta and Deco are big fans of Imanol, and they even made him aware of this during the MARCA awards earlier this week. The 52-year-old led La Real to Champions League football last season for the first time in a decade, and is widely considered to be one of the best managers in La Liga.
Imanol has a contract with Real Sociedad until 2025, so it may not be too difficult for Barcelona to get him if they do decide to move on from Xavi in the future. However, he is Basque-born and has a great affinity with the club, so it wouldn’t be easy either. Equally, Alguacil would be impossible to get before the end of the season, as La Liga rules prevent managers from coaching two clubs in the same season.