Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez has once again brought up the prospect of his departure, should he finish the season without a trophy. Athletic Club outlast Barcelona in extra time of their Copa del Rey quarter-final, advancing 4-2, leaving Barcelona with just the Champions League and La Liga to fight for, the summit of which is eight points in the distance.
Xavi said shortly after the match that they were not far off a result, despite the fact his side ran out of gas.
When the draw came out I already said that we had been unfortunate, because a single match in San Mames is always very difficult. We took the lead on the scoreboard when we conceded the first goal and we even had the winning goal in Lamine’s last chance before extra time. To rebuild from Saturday, to think about the League, the Champions League and compete in it. We can be proud, at least we have tried until the end,” he told MD.
Earlier this month Xavi had been blunt about the fact that if Barcelona did not win anything, or if he felt the squad were no longer responding to him, then he would leave at the end of the season. It was a topic he touched on again during his press conference.
“What I said is that I will have to leave if I do not win titles, or if we do not compete for them. You ring the alarm bells, but you are doing surveys on whether I will continue as a coach or not. When you don’t win, the coach is singled out. Today we competed for the title, but in the end, it’s the same at all big clubs. If by the end of the season we are not at a competitive level, I’ll go.”
Previously he had noted how proud he was, and went on to declare the future was bright though, saying “today, is the start of a new era, whether I am here or not. There is a future.”
The biggest positive for Barcelona was undoubtedly the performances of their youngsters. Despite missing two gilt-edged chances, Lamine Yamal was arguably Barcelona’s best player, while Hector Fort and Pau Cubarsi excelled in different circumstances too. The next major test for Barcelona is Napoli in the Champions League, which Xavi has just under a month to prepare for.
