As Barcelona sacks Xavi on Friday, the drama surrounding Joan Laporta’s presidency of the club continues to come under fire. The former star midfielder was informed of the decision during a meeting with club president Joan Laporta on Friday. Also present at the summit were five other key figures at the Spanish side, including sporting director Deco.
Xavi now departs the team despite compiling a solid 63% win rate and collecting the 2022/23 LaLiga title. The coach, however, endured a fairly difficult 2023/24 season. The Catalan club dropped as low as fourth in the top-flight table back in December. As a result of the disappointing display, Xavi previously revealed in January that he would leave at the end of the campaign.
Nevertheless, Barcelona quickly went on a lengthy unbeaten run following the announcement. Getting back on track made Laporta publicly plea for Xavi to reconsider his previous decision and remain with the club. Xavi finally agreed to the reversal just last month. However, Laporta has now U-turned Xavi’s U-turn and fired the manager with one match remaining on the schedule.
Spanish side previously mishandled club legends under Laporta
The Xavi debacle is hardly the lone instance of mistreatment of the club’s icons by the club’s brass. Laporta previously promised Lionel Messi a new contract ahead of the 2021/22 season. The superstar was ready and willing to stay with the team where he spent his entire senior career. As a result of the promise, Messi publicly backed Laporta during the 2021 Barcelona presidential election.
With the help of Messi and other key supporters, Laporta won the election with nearly 55% of the votes. The closest competitor to Laporta had a final tally of just under 30%. Laporta succeeded Josep Maria Bartomeu in the prestigious position. Nevertheless, Laporta reneged on his part of the deal and ultimately told Messi that the club could not afford to keep the superstar. The Argentine attacker then…
Source link : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/barcelona-sacks-xavi-joan-laporta/
Author : Chris Moore
Publish date : 2024-05-24 15:00:33
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.