A former teammate of Barcelona head coach Xavi has on Friday added to the mounting calls for the Spanish tactician to stay put on the Blaugrana’s bench this summer.
The subject of Xavi’s future, of course, has returned to the forefront of the headlines in a major way in Catalunya over the course of recent weeks.
As much comes with the ex-midfielder having steadied the ship, and more, on his way to getting Barcelona’s season firmly back on track.
Since announcing his intention to step down in the summer back in January, Barca have climbed all the way up to 2nd in La Liga, as well as being just 90 minutes away from a Champions League semi-final berth.
Pleas, as a result, have begun to mount, for Xavi to reverse his call to depart.
Both Blaugrana president Joan Laporta and vice-president Rafa Yuste have made public their hope that the club’s headmaster will ultimately stay on, with growing sections of the fanbase in Catalunya’s capital beginning to do likewise.
And, as alluded to above, on Friday, such calls have been added to by another high-profile figure.
The individual in question? Ivan Rakitić.
Midfielder Rakitić spent a season playing alongside Xavi in Barcelona’s engine room back in 2014/15.
And, when drawn on his former teammate’s impending departure from the club earlier today, the Croatian was adamant that Xavi remains the most qualified individual in world football to lead his one-time employers forward:
“It’s his decision, but there is no person in general who can understand Barça more or better than Xavi,” Rakitić began, during an interview with Jijantes. “He took the team at a very delicate moment, with many changes, with a not easy context that does not help either the club or the coach. And Xavi has still been able to move it forward.”
Conor Laird | GSFN
