2024-01-29T05:21:54+00:00
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/ Barcelona President Joan Laporta said that he accepted coach Xavi Hernandez’s offer to resign from his position at the end of the season because he is a “legend” at the Catalan club.
“It’s a formula I accept because Xavi suggested it to me, he’s a club legend, an honest and generous person who loves Barcelona,” Laporta told Barcelona media.
The 44-year-old former midfield maestro, nicknamed “The Puppet Master” or “The Computer”, announced on Saturday that he would leave his post on June 30, after a heavy 5-3 defeat to Villarreal that left the defending champions in fourth place with 44 points, 11 points behind leaders Girona in the 22nd round.
Xavi, who extended his contract last September until 2025, led Barcelona last season to win its first league title since 2019, in addition to the Spanish Super Cup.
Barcelona’s performance has declined sharply this season, losing to Real Madrid 1-4 in the Spanish Super Cup final in Riyadh, and then being eliminated from the King’s Cup quarter-finals by Athletic Bilbao 2-4 after extra time.
“The Spanish league will be difficult, but it has not slipped out of our hands yet. We have to fight to finish the season as high as possible,” Laporta also said.
“We have to give everything we have to win the Champions League as well,” he added, as Barcelona face Napoli in the last 16 in two weeks.