MADRID, 25 May. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The coach of FC Barcelona, and he has shown himself “available for whatever Barça needs” and willing to return if required.
“I’m fine, they have been difficult days. I am with a clear conscience, proud and happy; it has been two and a half years as Barça coach, it has not been easy, we knew it was going to be a difficult time when we came. I think We can be proud of the work done. It has not been an easy stage due to the situation the club is currently experiencing,” he declared at a press conference.
In this sense, he insisted that he has a “clear conscience” for having “given everything.” “A good job has been done despite the fact that this year we have not achieved the main objectives, which were titles. When you look back you see that we have achieved two titles, successes in many important matches… The experience has been spectacular, the learning tremendous and, therefore, I can only be satisfied and grateful to the club for the opportunity. We will try to finish in the best possible way, playing good football and enjoying the last game as Barça coach. It has been an honor and a pleasure,” he said. .
Furthermore, the Barça coach still told how he found out that he would not continue at the club next season. “The president conveyed to me his reasons why the club needs a change of direction, of coach. I have nothing left but to accept it, because he is the one who decides all things in the club. I am a club man “I will always be available for whatever Barça needs,” he said.
“We shook hands and a hug, we wished each other luck. From now on I will be another fan, I will go to Montjuïc and the Camp Nou with my family. I wish the best to the president, the sports director and, above all, the players, who are the ones who really have to be very well for this to work,” he continued.
The Catalan coach, who guaranteed that “there will be no problem” with the resolution of his contract, did not want, however, to talk about Joan Laporta’s reasons for doing without his services now. “It is a question that they must answer, they are their reasons, not mine. I have no choice but to accept and respect them,” he said.
“They have decided this thinking about the club, because they believe it needs a change of course. I can only accept it and respect it and wish it the best. Until today, I was still motivated, excited, with ambition intact and I believed a lot in this squad, obviously changing some things, but it couldn’t be,” he continued.
He also explained that he leaves “grateful to the president and the sports director.” “I have not had any problems with the leaders, quite the opposite: I am a man of consensus, of the team and of the club above all. I have adapted to all the very adverse circumstances that we have at the moment at the club and I have not had problems. The president gave me his reasons yesterday and I have no choice but to accept it because he is the one who makes the decisions,” he insisted.
On the other hand, Xavi did not want to show his opinion regarding the club’s decision. “They know my opinion, I have been very clear from the first day. It is not good for me to publicly give my opinion on whether it has been good or bad. It does not contribute anything to me. I leave grateful to the club and the president, who has given me the opportunity to be in the club I want,” he declared.
“I have had to make very important decisions, I don’t regret anything. I have been honest and sincere with the players and the leaders. I have given my best, we have worked with a lot of honor and a lot of love for this club. More than decisions personal ones, especially the sports ones: at a tactical level, situations in which we have made mistakes. We have been maturing and it has been a lesson for the future,” he explained.
Regarding the club’s sports vice president, Rafa Yuste, he said “Rafa has been “a very special man” who has given them “confidence until the last moment.” “They have made the decision, especially the president, to inform me that the club I need a change. With Rafa, grateful, as with the president, with Deco and with all the people we have worked with for the opportunity to be in the club of my life,” he stressed.
He also recounted how he informed the team of his departure. “I have explained to them the reality and the motives of the president and what ended up triggering my dismissal. I always try to be very honest and very honorable with the footballers and they have to know the reality of what has happened. It has gone well. The reaction of the footballers has been spectacular, on a public and private level it can be seen with their support for the ‘staff’. With that I am above all else,” he said.
In another order of things, Xavi did not want to go into assessing, as Quique Sánchez Flores did on Friday, how FC Barcelona fires its legends. “It is not a question for me, it is a question for the president, for the sports director… I would have liked other circumstances, I was excited to continue and I believed very much in this project. Yesterday they told me the opposite and I have no choice. other than to accept it,” he said.
Regarding a possible return to Barça in the future, he was very clear. “Yes, why not? I would like to, it is the club of my life. We have won, we have lost, we have been through a rollercoaster of emotions, but I love working for Barça. I am not closing the door, quite the opposite, I hope it ends up being possible to return. You can never imagine this, but it can happen, we are professionals. These are decisions that the club makes and I have no choice but to respect it and try to understand it,” he said.
“I haven’t thought about it. Right now we need a break and we will assess the circumstances that arise. We want the best for this club and hopefully we will have the opportunity to work again for and for the club of our lives,” he added.
Thus, everything indicates that Xavi will take a sabbatical year. “I already said that if I didn’t continue, I preferred a rest, which I think is necessary. From here on, let’s listen and see what the future has in store for us. A time resting, we surely need it,” he said.
Finally, he believes that injuries have not been key to the team’s performance this year. “We haven’t been lucky, but I don’t think that was the main reason. It’s clear that not having certain players hasn’t helped, but I think we’ve had it in our hands and we’ve failed. This is about winning titles and games. There are to do self-criticism and improve for the future,” he concluded.