Barcelona face uncertain future whether Xavi leaves or not

Sources claim that after a season in which Barcelona have ceded their La Liga title to arch-rivals Real Madrid and tumbled out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage, the coach and club may well part ways this summer.

President Laporta has through his actions developed a reputation as somewhat of a loose canon and after apparently agreeing that Xavi would remain in charge as recently as last month, is now again it seems considering a change.

Barça's supporters are not amused at this chaos and uncertainty and after the match against Rayo Vallecano, certainly made their feelings clear regarding who should stay and who should go.

Football is always in the end a results business and after a fine campaign in 2022-23 culminating in a first title win in four years, this season has been a major disappointment.

As well as finishing a long way behind Madrid, Barcelona have stuttered at times not always playing the sort of free-flowing, attacking football they have for so long been renowned for.

Key players have seen their form wax and wane and the coaches' tactics have come under scrutiny as well.

For a club of Barca's stature all this is difficult to accept and so in theory a change in coach may well be seen as reasonable option.

After all it is what happens at most teams when results fall away, especially when the pressure to win is as great as it is at a top European club with a reputation as big as Barcelona's.

Regardless though of whether Xavi stays on or not the Catalans face a tough and uncertain future after this season and need some restructuring in the summer.

Several key players are on the wrong side of thirty. In particular Robert Lewandowski the team's top scorer who is 35, midfielder İlkay Gündoğan (33) Marcus Alonso (33) Sergi Roberto (32) and Oriel Romeu who is 32.

There are some younger talents coming through at Camp Nou, among them players such as Gavi who is nineteen and sixteen-year-old Lamine Yamal but young players can be very inconsistent.

However, the club is strapped for cash and so any significant restructuring of the squad looks to be a very difficult task for anyone who occupies the Barça hotseat.

Meanwhile, Real look to be getting stronger all the time after a hugely successful season in which they have claimed La Liga and could yet add a fifteenth Champions League title too.

And, they look certain to add arguably the greatest talent in the game to a team already containing Europe's best young player in Jude Bellingham, if they sign Kylian Mbappé this summer.

For Barcelona to try and compete the club need to rely more on youth and recruit very skillfully, something they have arguably failed to do at critical times recently.