Xavi Hernandez preparing for Barcelona return as a coach amid Quique Setien exit talk

Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez has admitted this week that he is preparing himself to take on the role of the manager of the Catalan giants in the future. Xavi moved into management with Qatari outfit Al-Sadd soon after his retirement from professional football at the club last year. Amid the 'Quique Setien sacked by end of season' rumours, there has been a lot of talk around a new Barcelona coach at the helm for the start of the next campaign.

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Quique Setien sacked? Xavi Barcelona return being touted

According to reports from Sport, Barcelona great Xavi Hernandez is planning a return to his native in order to coach the Catalonian giants. Having retired from professional football in 2019, Xavi took up the managerial role at Al-Sadd in May last year and helped the club to the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League. The 'Xavi Barcelona return' rumours have thrilled a number of the Blaugrana faithful.

Xavi outlined his ambition to return at Barcelona as a coach insisting that he wants to 'start from scratch' and get the LaLiga giants back to winning ways. Xavi also revealed that his coaching staff are 'excited' at a potential return to Camp Nou in the future. Xavi spent 17 years at Barcelona as a player before moving to Al-Sadd in 2015. In total, Xavi won 25 major honours with Barcelona including eight LaLiga titles and four Champions League titles.

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Quique Setien sacked rumours: Xavi to take over as Barcelona coach?

Multiple reports have claimed that Barcelona are planning to sack Quique Setien by the end of the season. The 61-year-old took charge of the club earlier in January but has been on the receiving end of some poor results of late. Over the past week, Barcelona lost the top spot in the LaLiga standings and allowed Real Madrid to gain a two-point lead at the summit with six matchdays remaining. Quique Setien's Barcelona contract runs out in the summer of 2022.

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Xavi turned down the job as Barcelona coach in January

Despite being handed the chance to get his dream job as Barcelona coach earlier this year in January, Xavi turned down the offer. At the time, Xavi was in line to replace Ernesto Valverde as the Barcelona coach. However, the World Cup winner explained that the 'circumstances' and 'timing wasn't right' but remains optimistic for another shot at the Barcelona coaching job in the future. 

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Image Credits - Al-Sadd Twitter, AP