Barcelona have had a tough season, and after Saturday night’s loss against Villarreal, Xavi announced that he will be stepping down as Barça head coach at the end of the season.
Now TV4 Play experts Astrit Ajdarevic and Siavoush Fallahi share their wishes on who should replace Xavi for next season.
Ajdarevic thinks Brighton & Hove Albion manager Roberto De Zerbi is the right man.
– He is the one who feels the strongest right now, and precisely because of the football he plays. It’s total football. Thiago Motta is doing well with little means, amazingly well in Bologna, but I just envision De Zerbi having 4-3-3, lots of movement, quick wings and pace. That is what Barcelona is, says Ajdarevic in Soccer Saturday Europe and continues:
– They have always had quick wings, where people make runs in behind the back line and they can chip balls in to them, before it becomes a “cut back”. They also have intelligence in the middle and can have a playing football from the back with Marc-Andre ter Stegen in goal. I say De Zerbi.
Fallahi, in turn, wants to see Bologna’s Thiago Motta as the new Barcelona coach.
– Thiago Motta has been to the club and knows it. He is a few years into his career, and has done good things in smaller clubs. He plays a football that suits bigger clubs, and I also see a big difference between him and De Zerbi. De Zerbi has a philosophy and will never budge on it. It might suit Barcelona, but you also have to win, and I don’t think De Zerbi is a winning coach. I think Thiago Motta can be a winning coach, and that’s why I think he’s perfect for Barcelona. He will also not be able to come and make demands, as other bigger coaches do, given the financial situation.
Barcelona is currently in third place with ten points up on Real Madrid in the league lead in La Liga. Barcelona face Osasuna on Wednesday at home in the league game.
Watch all matches in La Liga on TV4 Play.
