Barcelona, November 6 (BNA): FC Barcelona announced, Saturday, that it has appointed former midfielder and captain Xavi Hernandez as head coach for a contract until 2024, after the dismissal of Ronald Koeman.
The La Liga club received the green light on Friday to sign the 41-year-old after he paid the release clause in his contract with Qatari club Al Sadd.
Xavi played for Barcelona for 17 years, playing 767 matches and winning 25 titles, including four Champions League titles and eight league titles.
“Welcome home, Xavi!” the club said in a statement. “Xavi Hernandez, Barcelona’s youth team producer, has left his current club, Qatar’s Al Sadd, after talks held over the past few days with the club’s owners.”
Holland coach Koeman was sacked after a 1-0 loss to Rayo Vallecano last month that left Barcelona ninth in the league.
The club is still in ninth place after the appointment of Sergei Barguan as interim coach, and is ninth behind leaders Real Sociedad, by nine points.
Barguan is set to remain in charge of the league match at Celta Vigo on Saturday, with Xavi arriving at Barcelona this weekend ahead of his presentation on Monday.
“It wasn’t a goodbye, it was (see you soon). Camp Nou has always been my home,” Xavi said in a video directed to fans.
“You are my fans, my people, the club I love the most. And now, I’m going home. See you soon, Colers. Furca Barca!”
Xavi’s first match will be a domestic derby against Espanyol on 20 November, after the international break.
Xavi, a former Spain international, joined Al Sadd as a player in 2015, and became head coach after he stopped playing in 2019. In April, he led his team to the local Qatari league title with the undefeated team.
He declined the opportunity to coach Barcelona in January 2020 after the sacking of Ernesto Valverde, but remained attached to the job even after Koeman succeeded Quique Setien in August last year.