Things continue to get messier at Barcelona, as the fallout from their defeat to Royal Antwerp paints an increasingly concerning image of Xavi Hernandez’s future as manager.
After another lacking performance which led to a fourth defeat in nine games, Xavi is under heavy pressure, which was only exacerbated by his disagreement with Sporting Director Deco over their squad list announcement.
He isn’t the only one who has seen Deco throwing his weight around this week. With Frenkie de Jong left in Barcelona due to a fever, the Brazilian seemingly did not believe the midfielder that this was indeed the case, as Marius Carol told RAC1 (via Sport).
🚨 JUST IN: Deco imagines another coach for Barça. @EsportsRAC1 pic.twitter.com/TquTJ8ZYKJ
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) December 14, 2023
“A person very close to me tells me that when the players take the plane to Antwerp, Deco is calling De Jong. And he gets angry at him. De Jong tells him: ‘I’m sick.’ Deco responds and says ‘What do you mean that you are sick, has the doctor has certified it?”‘ Frenkie responds that he has a fever. There is an argument. Deco doesn’t believe that De Jong is sick and thinks it’s an excuse.”
Given the precarious situation that Barcelona find themselves in, with little margin for error in La Liga, Deco accusing de Jong of lying seems unlikely to help matters. It could also have long-term effects for Barcelona. After Director of Football Mateu Alemany left, the idea was that Deco would improve relations between the club and de Jong, with a view to renewing his contract, but that looks more difficult now.
