Barcelona dressing room confronted Xavi Hernandez before match – ‘sale list’ leaked to players by insider

Barcelona look set to appoint Hansi Flick as their new manager today, but the drama surrounding Xavi Hernandez continues to rumble on. It has been revealed that there were moments of tension between the players and Xavi before his exit.

According to Tot Costa, there was a confrontation between Xavi and several players before Barcelona’s penultimate game of the season against Rayo Vallecano at Montjuic, which ended in a 3-0 defeat for the visitors. The players, which included Ronald Araujo and Robert Lewandowski, the former being one of the most annoyed, were at Xavi’s door over a ‘sale list’ that included some of the players, outlining the sections of the squad he was willing to part with.

🚨 Starting tomorrow, Flick will hold concrete talks with Deco about the squad and potential new signings. @Plettigoal

— barcacentre (@barcacentre) May 29, 2024

That list made it into the media this week, and the players understandably wanted to know the story, at which point Xavi reassured them that if he was trying to push them out, he would have told them to their faces, calling on the examples of Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba, where he instigated the exit of two legends. In particular, he told Araujo that his continuity was a priority for him, despite the persistent links to the exit door.

Perhaps most concerning for incoming manager Hansi Flick is that it was President Joan Laporta’s right-hand man and ex-brother in law that leaked the list to the players in order to undermine Xavi. Alejandro Echevarria does not have an official position at the club, but is a constant in the decision-making processes.

It illustrates the toxic atmosphere that Xavi was working in, and perhaps illustrates his hints that he did not have the full backing of the ‘entorno’, or environment around Barcelona. Flick has ample experience of a big club in Bayern Munich, but he will have to learn the political nuances at Barcelona swiftly to survive.