Xavi disagrees with Barcelona criticism and sees it as exaggerated

The waters are very troubled at the Barcelona seaside. Two recent defeats (against Girona and Antwerp) have done a lot of damage to the image of the side, and huge, glowing question marks have started to rapidly circle Montjuïc.

In his post-match press conference, Xavi argued that the inclusion of Robert Lewandowski, Ronald Araújo and Ilkay Gündogan in the squad had been a “consensual decision” between Laporta, Deco, himself and the players. This went against the message from the sporting director, who publicly disagreed with him hours later, assuring that the list had not been consensual, and that it depended “only on the coach”.

Journalist Gerard Romero said on Thursday that the coach is very annoyed at Deco after his public denial given to the pitch-side journalist. If true, the relationship and trust between coach and sporting director may well have begun to crack.

Xavi unhappy with microscopic criticism

AS understands that there is a feeling within Xavi’s entourage that the media are looking for any nook and cranny to damage the image of the Barcelona coach. What is true is that over the last few hours it seems that the unconditional support of the club has subsided - club directors and top executives have become suspiciously silent when asked about the coach’s continuity - but Xavi himself feels fully backed by Laporta, despite the fact that the outside grumblings are more deafening than ever before and there is already open speculation about his future at the club.

The coach and his staff feel positive and are all eager to turn the situation around, stressing that nothing is over just yet. They also acknowledge that the team is still alive in all four competitions this season, and know there is a special sense of achievement on qualifying as top of the group in the Champions League after two years of falling down into the Europa League during the first round.

Barcelona still support the project, Xavi feels

With respect to Laporta, Xavi continues to say he feels his absolute support and that the boss of the club has transmitted this confidence to him, despite the defeat in Belgium. That does not detract from the fact that the president left the Antwerp stadium very angry: he left the field with a serious expression on his face and opted against commenting when asked about Xavi’s future at the helm of the first team.

“On Saturday, against Valencia”, Xavi said, “we have a final. I feel good, I’m positive.” Any result other than a victory would definitely open Pandora’s box.

Barcelona play Valencia on Saturday, December 16 KO 3 p.m. ET / noon PT.