Manchester United were interested in Xavi to replace Erik ten Hag before U-turn on Barcelona future | OneFootball

Manchester United were seriously interested in Xavi becoming their new coach before he decided to stay one more year at Barcelona.

Erik ten Hag was widely credited with doing a fantastic job in his debut season, where the club finished third in the league, won the Carabao Cup and reached the final of the FA Cup.

This season however has been a nightmare as the side find themselves sixth in the league and were out of Europe before Christmas.

It is true that the Red Devils are in another FA Cup final but even a win in the showpiece event next month may not be enough to save the Dutchman’s future.

Naturally, numerous coaches have been linked to the club such as Thomas Tuchel, Ruben Amorim, Roberto De Zerbi and Graham Potter.

However, one name that has not been mentioned much, until recently, is that of Xavi.

The Catalan announced earlier this week that he had made a U-turn on his decision to leave the Liga club at the end of the season and will stay until at least 2025.

Spanish outlet Relevo reports that United were left disappointed by the news as the former midfield maestro was a serious candidate to replace Ten Hag.

“The new leadership had its eyes on Xavi as a candidate to lead United starting in the summer, if Ten Hag’s goodbye to Old Trafford was confirmed,” the outlet claims.

“The fact that the manager staying was confirmed, has disappointed the United leaders, who will have to continue searching (for a replacement)”.

Despite having a contract until 2025, Ten Hag “will not continue except for a major surprise. Xavi’s name has been on the Red Devils’ table for some time and weeks ago interest was received through his agents”.

As to why INEOS would be interested in the former World Cup winner it is said, “they saw in Xavi a young coach, a legend known throughout the world, with broad shoulders after having led Barça and with the capacity to take on a major project. A profile opposite to a coach from the islands, such as Graham Potter”.

However, “negotiations were not reached with Arturo Canales, Xavi’s agent, but interest did move after Xavi announced that he would leave Barça at the end of the season”.

“With Xavi starting the next season in Barcelona, United lose one of their main candidates to occupy the Old Trafford bench”.

The 44 year old would certainly have been an interesting option, as he is a global icon and all of the current players plying a trade would have looked up to the midfielder as a reference.

Moreover, his managerial record at Barcelona has been judged as relatively successful in spite of continuous failures in Europe, as he won the league title last season with the Blaugrana in a less than ideal financial state.

Nonetheless, the lack of rumours surrounding the manager elsewhere point to the fact that perhaps the club’s interest in the Catalan was not as serious as Relevo suggest.

Want to be the first to hear breaking Man United news? For carefully selected, crucial updates, join our WhatsApp channel: https://bit.ly/United-Breaking-News.