Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernández this evening aimed a thinly-veiled dig at those intent on making the pressures of management in Catalunya near unbearable.
The bombshell news regarding the situation on the bench at Barcelona, of course, was forthcoming a short time ago.
This came in the form of Xavi confirming his impending departure from the club.
After the Blaugrana slipped to another damaging defeat, on this occasion at the hands of Villarreal, Barca’s headmaster was notably late to his ensuing post-match press conference.
And, upon his arrival, Xavi confirmed that this came owing to a prolonged discussion with Joan Laporta and co, during which the former midfielder announced his decision to move on at the season’s end:
“I want to announce that on June 30 I will no longer continue as the coach at Barça. I think the situation needs to change course, and as a culer, I cannot allow the current situation.”
From here, Xavi was inevitably drawn on the reasoning behind his decision, as well as a host of other topics.
And, as alluded to above, amid his latest grilling, the 44-year-old made use of the opportunity to take firm aim at his detractors.
Condemning the Barcelona fans who have long called for his head, as well as the media presence consistently adding to the pressure on his shoulders, in one fell swoop, Xavi stated:
“You asked me many times that if I’d be the Sir Alex Ferguson of Barça… the truth is that it will NEVER happen here.”
He continued:
“You guys won’t allow it — being Barça coach is so difficult. You see how they kill you, they criticize you, it affects you.”
Conor Laird | GSFN
