Barcelona sack Quique Setien and announce date for presidential election
Quique Setien out as Barcelona manager after eight months in charge.
Barcelona confirmed the sacking of manager Quique Setién following the board meeting on Monday. The club sent out an official statement thanking the now former manager and wishing him the best of luck moving forward.
"“The Board of Directors have agreed that Quique Setién is no longer the first team coach. This is the first decision within a wider restructuring of the first team which will be agreed between the current technical secretary and the new coach, who will be announced in the coming days.Source: FC BarcelonaMore from Everything BarcaFC Barcelona tracking Belgian WonderkidFC Barcelona vs Betis Player RatingsBarça boss Xavi to get contract extensionFC Barcelona planning swoop for Arsenal midfielderBarcelona interested in €30 million wonderkid"
The interesting part of the statement is that firing the manager is just the first in a long line of changes. The most immediate is the announcement of the next manager.
Former player Ronald Koeman is the leading candidate to take over with representatives from both sides finalizing final details.
At the moment, it appears that he will sign a one-year deal with an option for a second. It is important to remember that with elections set to be held next year, whoever wins will likely want to bring in their own manager.
Barça expect to finalise a deal for Koeman tomorrow, so he can be presented on Wednesday. The club offer him two years of contract (1+1 additional one). [cope] pic.twitter.com/W4khEYSH1v
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) August 17, 2020
Elections set to take place in March.
Along with the firing of Setién, the club also announced that presidential elections will take place in March of 2021. In other words, Josep Maria Bartomeu will not be stepping down as president.
"“After considering all options, the Board consider this to be the most viable date for the aforementioned elections.The Board understand that an immediate call for elections is not feasible, given that the league season will begin on the weekend of September 12, 2020 and the situation arising from the COVID-19 crisis – both economically and socially.Source: FC Barcelona"
As mentioned, despite three humiliating exits from the Champions League in a row and a season where the club went trophyless, Bartomeu seems adamant to see his tenure out.
The “wider restructuring” of the club is only window dressing if all it means is that a new manager will be appointed and few players will be sold and bought. Bartomeu has spent the past few seasons making changes both on and off the pitch. The only constant in the downfall of the club is he’s been the one in charge.
With the league starting soon because of the impact of COVID-19, the Catalans do not have a lot of time to implement their changes. In addition, there are a couple of internal ones that need to be addressed.
The elephant in the room being the future of Lionel Messi. Will he stay or will he go?
Bartomeu, however, is still not out of the woods. While he may not be stepping down voluntarily, a motion of no confidence could see him leave the club.
Next. Barcelona must try to sign a world-class defender over the transfer window. dark
The significant change that many of the club’s supporters want to see will not come until a new board takes over and that is unlikely to happen until next year.