Thiago Motta Laporta’s favourite for Barcelona job if Xavi sacked, Rafa Márquez an option

Xavi’s situation at Barcelona is becoming very delicate. After getting knocked out of two competitions in the space of two weeks - the Spanish Super Cup and the Copa del Rey - sitting eight points behind the LaLiga leader and far from being one of the favourites to win the Champions League, it seems complicated that the team will end the season with a trophy in the cabinet.

Given the very public use of ‘economic levers’ throughout the summer, finishing the year empty-handed would be a huge blow for Barcelona, as their economic stability depends heavily on winning silverware.

As the club trudge through this sticky situation, Manu Carreño, Director of Spanish radio programme El Larguero on Cadena SER, analysed the climate and spoke about possible replacements for Xavi, the current head coach: “If in the end it’s a disaster and he leaves before the end of the season, which seems difficult at the moment, Rafa Márquez is waiting in the wings. If Xavi manages to end the season [at the club], it seems that one of the names that Joan Laporta prefers, even above Rafa Márquez, would be Thiago Motta,” says Carreño about a Barcelona side already filing through names for the summer.

‘No money to fire Xavi’

Thiago Motta is currently a head coach in Italy, with Bologna. His season in Serie A has been outstanding, and has the team in seventh place, just one point away from the European places and only two points away from the Champions League. In the Coppa Italia, they lost to Fiorentina in a penalty shootout in the quarter-finals, but left a solid impression. Motta was already strongly linked last summer to go to PSG. Before Bologna, he also coached Spezia and Genoa in Italy.

On the radio show, Sique Rodríguez talked about the delicate economic situation that Barça are going through, and that this could change the roadmap with the coach, since there is no money to be able to fire Xavi and hire a new name at this time, meaning the change of coach would always have to come in the summer and only if Barcelona do not win anything: “If the next three months are like the first five, Xavi will not continue. What happens is that the situation at the club is complicated, because at an economic level Barça is still a slave to fair play”.

‘Not enough money to sign an experienced coach’

Jordí Martí assures that a change of coach would not make Barça much better: “Would Rafa Márquez or Thiago Motta guarantee a return to the titles? Even more so in this Barça, which is in tatters”. Journalist Antonio Romeo mentioned to the economic situation of Barça as a key point in analysing a possible replacement: “There is not enough money to sign an experienced coach either”.

Barcelona’s next game is against Villarreal at Montjuïc in LaLiga EA Sports. The game is set to be played on Saturday 27 January with kick-off at 12:30pm ET / 9:30am PT. Barcelona sit 3rd in LaLiga.

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