Barcelona have sacked coach Ronald Koeman following Wednesday’s 1-0 LaLiga loss to Rayo Vallecano, their third defeat in their last four league matches.
Following Koeman’s exit, sources have told ESPN that the club will open talks with Xavi Hernandez on Friday regarding the vacancy, with the former team captain now the first option.
However, the same sources add that Barca don’t expect to have a replacement in place until after the November international break. An interim coach is set to take charge of the next three games versus Alaves, Dynamo Kiev and Celta Vigo.
The 58-year-old leaves Barca ninth place in the league and in danger of missing out on the Champions League knockout phase for the first time in 20 years, with the side yet to register an away victory in any competition this season.
Koeman’s position had been seriously weakened after poor results prior to the October international break, with back-to-back defeats versus Real Madrid and Rayo this week proving to be the tipping point.
The club said in a statement: “FC Barcelona have relieved Ronald Koeman of his duties as first-team coach. The president of the club, Joan Laporta, informed him of the decision after the defeat against Rayo Vallecano.
“Koeman will say goodbye to the squad on Thursday at the Ciutat Esportiva. FC Barcelona wishes to thank him for his service to the club and wishes him all the best in his professional career.”
As for Xavi, the 41-year-old former midfield great won a slew of trophies with Barca in his 17 years as a senior player, including eight LaLiga titles and four Champions League medals. He then joined Al Sadd in 2015, becoming head coach at the Qatari club after hanging up his boots in 2019. It is his only managerial experience so far.
Along with Xavi, sources had previously told ESPN that Belgium boss Roberto Martinez and was among the candidates.
Laporta had first considered sacking Koeman in the summer and even told him he needed two weeks to try and find a new manager. In the end, due to a lack of credible alternatives, Laporta decided to stick with Koeman.
However, sources stated that former Netherlands boss Koeman was upset by Laporta’s actions and the relationship between the two has never been the same since.
Despite that, Laporta handed Koeman a stay of execution last month after the 3-0 Champions League loss to Benfica in Lisbon. Since then, though, Barca have lost to Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and now Rayo in the league.
Asked if the result placed his job in danger, hours before he was fired, Koeman said “I don’t know.”
Koeman had been appointed by the previous president Josep Maria Bartomeu 13 months ago, replacing Quique Setien after Barca’s 8-2 loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League in August 2020.
He left his job with the Netherlands, paying the Dutch Football Association the compensation out of his own pocket, to take on what he had said was his “dream job.”
Since retiring in 1997, Koeman has coached in the Netherlands, Portugal, England and Spain to varying levels of success. He won two Dutch titles with Ajax Amsterdam and did a good job at Southampton, but he left Valencia and Everton after failing to live up to expectations.
