How constant criticism and pressure of the game forced Xavi to quit Barcelona coach job

After Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, another top club in European football is set to lose its manager as Xavi Hernandez announced on Saturday that he will leave his position at Barcelona at the end of the season. Xavi’s announcement came after his team’s 3-5 defeat to Villareal at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys. The latest defeat has left Barca 10 points adrift of leader La Liga Real Madrid with 7 matches more to go. “I would like to announce that on June 30 I will cease being the coach of Barca,” Xavi said. “As a Barcelona fan, I can’t allow this situation to continue, we need a change of course and of dynamics.” However, it is not just loss of form that prompted Xavi to make the decision to quit as Barca coach. The Villareal loss was Barcelona’s second consecutive defeat after losing to Athletic Bilbao in Copa del Rey quarter-final on 25 January. They had also lost to Real Madrid in the Super Cup final earlier this moth. After the Villarreal debacle Xavi said his players’ lacked the “maturity” to know how to hold onto leads, and after the Bilbao loss he also underscored that he was playing with several young players. But that seemed at odds with the fact that his starting side was led with veterans like Lewandowski, Ilkay Gundogan and players in their prime like Pedri González and Frenkie de Jong. Criticism played a role Xavi also said that the constant criticism of his tactics and performance played a major role in him taking the decision to quit as it was affecting his mental health. “The feeling of being the coach of Barcelona is cruel, it is unpleasant, you feel like you don’t get the respect you deserve,” Xavi said. “It wears you down, affects your mental health, your emotions, up to the point that you say you can’t go on. My loved ones know that.” Xavi said he made the decision for the good of the club. “I’ve thought about the club … and above all the players,” said Xavi. “I have the feeling that I am doing the right thing, that I am acting with common sense. “I think the club needs a change of dynamics, the dynamic is very negative.” Barcelona players spoke after the defeat by Villarreal before Xavi’s decision, saying the team’s collapse was not the coach’s fault. “There is full confidence in the technical team, it’s the fault of the players,” midfielder Frenkie de Jong told DAZN. Defender Ronald Araujo said “of course” the team backed the coach. “Since he came here, we’ve learnt a lot, we’ve been champions and it’s almost the same team, plus a few more players,” he explained. Xavi’s history at Barcelona Xavi, who starred in midfield for Barcelona between 1998-2015, won every major trophy with the club including eight La Liga titles and four Champions League trophies. He returned to Barcelona as the coach in November 2021 with his only experience a stint in Qatar. He has a contract through the end of next season. The 44-year-old Xavi led Barcelona to the Spanish Super Cup title and the Spanish league title last season, the club’s first trophies since the exit of Lionel Messi. The club mortgaged its future to help him do that by signing players like Robert Lewandowski. But Barcelona has struggled this season and has shown severe signs of suffering a collapse this month. With agency inputs