Xavi will remain after a previously announced departure

NOS Football•today, 1:36 PM

Xavi will remain trainer of FC Barcelona. The Spanish coach announced in January that he would step down as Barça coach at the end of this season, but has now backed down.

“We know he made a statement in the middle of the season, but today we have the good news that he is staying and that he has conveyed enthusiasm and confidence in the project,” chairman Joan Laporta said at a press conference.

After the 5-3 defeat against Villareal in January, Xavi announced his departure. “I don’t want to become a problem for the club. I think the current situation deserves a change of course,” he said at the time.

However, Laporta and technical director Deco wanted to keep him. Xavi has been at the helm of the Catalans since Ronald Koeman’s dismissal in 2021.

Barcelona no longer has a chance of winning prizes this season. The team failed last week against Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.

In the Copa del Rey, the team was eliminated in the semi-finals by Athletic Club de Bilbao and in the competition the club is in second place, eleven points behind Real Madrid.