“We were always hoping that he would reconsider” – Eurobarca.hu

Barcelona president Joan Laporta opened his Thursday press conference by announcing: “Xavi will continue next season”after Xavi indicated to the management at the board meeting on Wednesday evening that his position had changed and that he would be inclined to stay: “I am especially happy that the board unanimously decided to keep him.” said President Laporta.

Laporta’s speech:

“We are pleased to inform you that Xavi will continue to coach Barça’s first team. We know he has made statements in which he was considering leaving at the end of the season, but we have spoken and he has shown his enthusiasm, ambition and confidence in the project.”

“Maintaining stability is a very important factor in successful projects. For me, this is a principle. Based on my experience as a chairman, I have learned that stability is essential for projects.”

“That Xavi is Culé is unquestionable, as is the case with the rest of the board. We have a coach who always looks out for Barça’s interests. I’ve always said that and it’s great news that Xavi is continuing. I also think that our team, which is coming together right now, needs that stability, and Xavi will contribute to that stability.”

“Xavi enjoys the trust of the board and, I hope, of the Barcelona fans as well. Maintaining stability is good news. Let’s remember that this is a project that practically started last year and we have already won a Super Cup and a league title, which I would call historic. Xavi had the courage to take on this responsibility. That’s why I think Barcelona fans should remember those actions.”

After his speech, Laporta answered the journalists’ questions:

Evaluation of the season

“We were very focused on the Champions League, there was a lot of enthusiasm in the dressing room because of this. There is hope and pride in the fans, we think we have to keep it going. That’s why we tried to take the positive side, the positive things out of this season. We have a team of very good players with a bright future ahead of us, a unified dressing room and a fan base that is excited. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Barcelona fans so excited, we wanted to maintain that spark.”

The near future

“We are working to try to certify under the best possible conditions. We are making great efforts to reduce the wage bill to the level we set, and LaLiga will also appreciate this in the sense that we will have more room for maneuver in the area of ​​FFP. We’ll see how we can strengthen it.”

The circumstances of the decision

“I always wanted Xavi to stay. I didn’t say anything about it during the season because we were competing in important series. Our understanding from the beginning was that if we made some necessary changes, we could give him an argument that he would want to continue working.”

The material ones

“I confirm Xavi’s words, it wasn’t about money, it was about sports reasons. Barcelona fans should know that Xavi was never greedy when it came to money, he always thought of the club and never had any demands from us.”

El Clásico

“After the match at the Bernabéu, we were completely outraged. We will go to the extreme, these abuses cannot happen. I already talked about this, and we also talked with the CTA about the pictures. We believe it was a goal, the image of the match was distorted and we will go to the end. It can’t be that there are thirty cameras at a match, and the one that could decide whether it was a goal or not is not working right now.”

Looking for Xavi’s successor

“I’m very attached to Xavi and I needed to see him excited, with the confidence he exudes. We needed to calm down. When we greeted each other, it was clear to us that we should continue working together. I told him: ‘we will not look for a coach until the end of the season, we will wait to see what happens.’ I didn’t tell him, but I was waiting to see how he felt. Xavi has gained a lot of experience this year. Everything is always changing and developing, we have to draw positive conclusions from this year, of which there are many. We have not started negotiations with any coach. We have always said that if Xavi confirms what he said in January, then the coach who wants to come will have to wait until the end of the season. We were always hoping that Xavi would reconsider.”

What is required for the club to certify according to the 1:1 rule?

“We have not yet received LaLiga’s approval of our plan for this, but some feedback confirms that we are on the right track. The economic recovery of the club is a fact, Espai Barça is taking shape. All signs indicate that we can return home (to the Camp Nou) in December.”

This season ended without a trophy

“Obviously there are always consequences to defeat and the consequences will be the changes we will make. These are changes of different kinds. We believe that this season, even though we did not reach our goals, there were positive things in store. A project is solidified, there are young players who really burst into the first team. I find the project to be great in terms of enthusiasm, confidence and ambition. The consequences don’t have to be drastic, I’m not going to give joy to those who want to destroy everything, especially for a project that I think still excites Barcelona fans.”

Final conclusion

“The need to continue to believe in the project for the sake of the Culés. I will conclude by assuring you that in the person of the first team coach, we are dealing with an extraordinary person who has a spectacular knowledge of football and who radiates enthusiasm, confidence and generosity towards the club. Barcelona fans can be proud of Xavier.”

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