Xavi to STAY as Barcelona boss but club demand legend sacks his own brother

Barcelona have convinced Xavi to stay on as manager for another year, it has been claimed - after asking him to sack his own brother.

Former club captain Xavi won La Liga in 2023 after returning to Camp Nou as manager, but found things a little tougher this season. His contract was due to run until the summer of 2025, but announced in January that this season will be his last in charge.

According to Mundo Deportivo, Xavi will now see out his contract and attempt to lead Barcelona to glory once more next season. He's expected to do so without brother Oscar Hernandez, though, with the club urging him to get rid of the assistant manager as well as a fitness coach.

RAC1 (via Football Espana ) reports that Xavi held talks with Barca top brass Deco, Rafa Yuste and Joan Laporta on Wednesday. The club is said to want the boss to appoint a new number two, with Pep Guardiola's former assistant Domenec Torrent put forward as a potential name, after working with Oscar at Al-Sadd and bringing him to Catalunya in 2021.

Xavi's announcement came hot on the heels of Jurgen Klopp's decision to call time on his Liverpool tenure. The German indicated he would be taking a break, rather than immediately taking another club job, but Barca were said at the time to be confident of changing his mind after adapting to their boss' decision to lead.

“I will leave Barcelona in June," Xavi said in January after a defeat against Villarreal. "We have reached a point of no return. It's time for change. As a Culé, I think that it's time to leave. I spoke with the board and the club today. I will leave on the 30th of June.

“Everything will be calmer now, we can compete for the Champions League … at least with this decision you [the press] won’t kill me anymore. The club will improve with this decision”.

Is Xavi staying at Barcelona the best outcome for all parties? Have your say in the comments section

Former Al-Sadd assistant Oscar Hernandez followed brother Xavi to Barcelona
(Image: Eric Alonso/Getty Images)

Since those comments, though, Barcelona have taken 26 points from a possible 33 in La Liga to close in on second place. They also beat Napoli in the Champions League round of 16, but lost to Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals.

Barcelona's failure to prompt a change of heart from Klopp comes after the German laid out his plans clearly in January. "No club, no country for the next year. No other English club ever," he said. "Even if I have nothing to eat, it will not happen."

Back in 2019, the former Borussia Dortmund boss had outlined his eventual plans when the time came to leave Liverpool. "I have one problem. I can't do 'a little bit'," he told Kicker. "I can only do 'all or nothing'. When I decide that I cannot do it any longer then I will take a break for a year."

Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.