Story via Caughtoffside
A defeat at Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday night was the final straw for Joan Laporta who acted in the immediate aftermath to relieve Ronald Koeman of his duties as Barcelona coach.
The Dutchman had only been in charge of a club he served with distinction as a player for just over a year, but he’s overseen one of the worst periods in club history, much of the problems being caused by Koeman himself.
His stubbornness in not playing certain stars and often refusing to adopt the favoured Barca 4-3-3 formation was as much to blame for his downfall as anything else.
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Goal.com suggest that another former star, Xavi Hernandez, has been approached to take over the position, and he’ll surely be welcomed with open arms by the Catalan faithful.
However, he doesn’t have a magic wand and all of Barca’s ills won’t be fixed overnight.
It is going to take time, for instance, for the players to get used to the tempo that Xavi wants to play at, even if his style should be second nature for most.
Tough decisions need to be made and that could upset team equilibrium even further at a time when calmness is required.
Further, though Xavi has done well in his managerial career to this point, managing Al-Sadd in the Qatari league isn’t quite the same as trying to restore one of the world’s greatest clubs to its former glories.