Barcelona announce Thiago Alcantara replacement as ex-Liverpool midfielder exits | OneFootball

Despite reports that Thiago Alcantara would extend his coaching role at the club until at least September, on Friday morning Barcelona announced his exit from the club with immediate effect. The ex-Liverpool and Bayern Munich midfielder will now take some time to evaluate his future.

Thiago came in on a temporary basis to aid Hansi Flick in his early stages at Barcelona, as someone that can speak German and Spanish, and understands both Barcelona and Flick’s intentions in terms of style. By all accounts, he was playing a crucial role in the early stages of Flick’s tenure, and was the main point of communication.

The Blaugrana have announced that Cadete A (under-16 level) coach Arnau Blanco will take over from Thiago as part of the first-team coaching staff. He will travel to Valencia with the team.

It remains to be seen how much of an impact this has, and regardless it will be hard to tell. The reporting on Thiago was unanimously positive though. Former Hamburg and Real Betis defender Heiko Westermann is also part of the coaching staff, and speaks both German and Spanish, but Flick has so far decided against communicating in Spanish, at least publicly.