Xavi accepts offer to become Barcelona manager; Here's his record as Al Sadd manager

Former Spain and Barcelona footballer Xavi Hernandez has accepted Barcelona’s offer to become the La Liga team’s new manager, following the sacking of Ronald Koeman. Koeman was removed as the manager of the first team of Barcelona after the team lost their third match of the La Liga 2021-22 season by 1-0 against Rayo Vallecano. Following his sacking, Xavi agreed to return to Camp Nou as a manager after talks with Barcelona president Joan Laporta. However, the deal is still due as the former Barca midfielder is yet to terminate his current contract as the manager of Qatari club Al Sadd. 

After coming up through Barcelona’s junior academy, Xavi made 767 appearances for Barcelona, before moving to Al Sadd where he finished his career as a player. However, he stepped up to become the manager of the club in July 2019 and found success in the new role. Since 2019, Al Sadd has played a total of 89 matches under the mentorship of Xavi, out of which they have won 61 matches. Whereas, the Qatari club have faced defeats in 16 matches, and the rest 12 have ended in draws. 

Al-Sadd's average of 2.33 points per match under Xavi

Adding to the endeavours achieved by Xavi as the manager of Al-Sadd, the club has picked up as many as seven different titles under Xavi. The team first won the Qatari Super Cup during the 2018-19 season, before earning the Qatari Stars Cup title, Qatari Cup title, and the Qatari League Cup title in the 2019-20 season. In the 2020-21 season, the team went on to pick their second Qatari cup and Qatari League Cup, which takes the total tally of cups under Xavi to a staggering no. of seven titles in just 2.33 years. 

In the 2021-22 season, Al-Sadd has played seven matches under Xavi in the Qatar Stars League and has won all their matches. Xavi has a staggering average of 2.19 points per match for the club. His current contract as the manager of Al-Sadd expires on June 30, 2023, which may come to an end much before, looking at the current scenario with Barcelona.

(Image: AP)