Barcelona president favours two UCL-winning managers as Xavi replacement options | OneFootball

The pressure on Xavi cooled to an extent after the team’s 3-0 win over Rayo Vallecano at the weekend, especially after fans in the stadium rallied behind the under-fire manager.

All is still far from clear, however, in the Catalan capital. Joan Laporta is still at war with the club legend for his recent comments and a resolution appears distant.

As revealed earlier today, Xavi’s future will now depend on a report from Deco that is expected in the coming days. The possibility of his departure is still on the cards, and Barcelona are thus keeping their backups ready.

Two candidates

Rafa Marquez was initially seen as a top candidate to replace Xavi as the manager of the first team, but the situation seems to have changed in recent days after a clash of opinions internally.

According to reports from Jose Alvarez, Thomas Tuchel and Hansi Flick are Barcelona president Joan Laporta’s two top targets to take over the reins of the team if Xavi leaves this summer.

Laporta will look to replace Xavi. (Photo by LLUIS GENE/AFP via Getty Images)

The former, who is set to leave Bayern Munich at the end of the season, has been known as one of the game’s best tacticians for years now.

Flick, meanwhile, was initially rejected as the board saw his experience outside Germany to be limited, but his name has reemerged in recent days.

Meeting held

As revealed earlier today, Barcelona director Deco and Bojan Krkic are in London to meet sextuple-winning manager Hansi Flick and his agent Pini Zahavi.

The tactician, currently without a post, is undoubtedly seen as one who can lead the team’s long-term project, especially given his previous stint at Bayern Munich.

The manager is said to be keen on a move to Catalonia and has turned down interest from Chelsea to keep his dream alive. It thus remains to be seen if the appointment reaches fruition in the coming weeks.