Barcelona coach Xavi Hernández has already indicated that he welcomes the return of Lionel Messi, but according to the coach there will now also be clarity in the short term. The Argentinian will announce his choice for the future in the near future.
Xavi knows when Messi brings out the decision on his future
In conversation with El Mundo Deportivo, Xavi lifts a corner of the veil. “He’ll make a decision next week and I think now it’s up to us to leave him alone. In the end he is the one who decides about his future and we can talk about it every day, but then a lot of things are said that are not correct,” Xavi said.
“The doors are open to him and there is no more discussion”
The former Barcelona midfielder, who also played with Messi at Camp Nou, has no doubts about the added value of the world champion for his team. He continued, “The doors are open to him and there is no more discussion.”
Following the departure of club icons Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, Messi’s experience is very welcome in Xavi’s squad. “Leo is also a natural leader, he would adapt perfectly to the circumstances, he was captain of this club, he was the best player in the history and of course of this club. Once more; I urge the club management to bring him back to the club. As far as I am concerned, there is no longer any doubt,” the manager revealed.
“We need a midfielder of the category to fill the gap of Sergio Busquets”
In addition to Messi, the Catalans have also been linked to Manchester City’s Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva, Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi and Bayern Munich midfielder Joshua Kimmich. Xavi is less outspoken about that set of players.
The former iconic midfielder concluded: “Bernardo would be great, but he’s still a City player. If we want Kimmich, we will have to negotiate with Bayern. And when I said something about Zubimendi last time, they got mad at me at Sociedad. I can say that we need a midfielder of the category to fill the gap of Sergio Busquets.”
