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6:08
Barcelona: Total agreement for the signing of Xavi Hernández
The news has already been made official by Al Sadd, but Barcelona has not made it official yet, and it is believed that it will only be a matter of time before they make it official through a statement on their social networks. Xavi Hernández is already the new coach of the Catalans officially and in charge of bringing joy back to the team.
A signing that has seen something complex, mainly due to the absence of Joan Laporta in the board that traveled to Doha, something that the Al Sadd managers did not take at all well and is that the president of Barcelona did not want to go out with Mohammed bin Khalifa Al -Thani in the photo, who is the president of the Qatari club.
However, the very good relationship between Xavi and the owners of al Sadd have allowed him to leave without so many problems, so the team has allowed his departure in the middle of the season.
Payment of the termination clause
The biggest problem for the signing was Xavi Hernández's termination clause with the Qatari club, mainly because the Catalan club is currently going through an economic crisis that does not allow it to cover it and which is between five and ten million dollars.
According to the latest information collected on this case, the club would have reached an agreement with the Spanish coach for said clause to be paid between the two and to which Xavi had accepted. This is how this Saturday Xavi would be flying rumba to Barcelona to his old home.
Xavi's requirements to renew with Al Sadd
It has been learned that the Spanish coach would have reached an agreement with the Qatari club for his renewal, it was that if Barcelona looked for him, they would let him go without inconvenience. However, the club had agreed to that request, but they were not willing that this will happen mid-season.
Being left without a coach in the middle of the season would leave the team in the air with so many titles to play. This would have been the main reason why the Qatari club rejected the possibility that Xavi Hernández will leave the team.
But a meeting this Friday morning between the coach and the owners of Al Sadd have unblocked this whole situation, so the owners of the Qatari club allowed the Spaniard to fulfill his dream and continue to grow as a technical director at the international level.
Al Sadd has rushed to formalize the transfer of the Spanish where he published the following statement: "The administration has agreed on the transfer of Xavi Hernández to Barcelona after paying the penalty clause stipulated in the contract. We agreed with Barcelona a practical cooperation in the future".
"Xavi has become an important part of Al Sadd. We wish him every success in this new stage," explained the general manager of the Arab club, Turki Al-Ali.
On the other hand, the CEO of Al Sadd added the following: "Xavi has informed us in recent days of his intentions to go through the experience of directing Barcelona, especially at this time when the Spanish club is going through a critical stage, we understand it, and we made the decision not to intercede on their way".
"Xavi and his family will always be welcome in Doha and our relationship will continue," stressed Al-Ali. However, this somewhat hasty statement from the Qatari club disturbed the tranquility of Barcelona and was taken as a measure of pressure for the board in Doha.
A directive led by Mateu Alemany and Rafa Yuste, who after the Al Sadd statement would have to return with Xavi Hernández to avoid being ridiculous again. From the Camp Nou they worried about the financial fair play measures that would not prevent paying the five million that Al Sadd demanded.
It must be taken into account that the Catalan club must cover Ronald Koeman's compensation after having dismissed him from the team, which is 12 million euros plus Xavi Hernández's release clause of five million and the salaries that both he and his work team.
What clearly has turned Barcelona into an expense that ranges between 20 or 25 million euros.
Barcelona and Xavi reach an agreement
Right now the financial situation of Barcelona is not for these money expenses, which is why it has led to long hours of negotiation between the Spanish coach and the club, so Xavi Hernández would be paying half of the clause and Barcelona would assume The other part.
The Spanish coach knows that he will recover this amount of money with the different promotional events as an ambassador for Qatar, a country that will host the Soccer World Cup next year.
If Xavi's departure had been at the end of the season and in accordance with the ex-azulgrana's requests at the time of renewing the contract, he would have been able to leave Qatar without paying any clause, but as it has been done in the middle of the season, the club has made the decision to collect it.
On the other hand, the coach's agents, Fernando Solanas and Arturo Canales, have been working on an operation with many complexities at the fiscal level, which is why the Barça team has not made official the arrival of Xavi Hernández to the team.
One of the objectives of the two representatives of the former player is not to have any future problems with the Treasury in Spain. So surely the Spanish team will not make this news official until everything is completely resolved.
Xavi's farewell
Xavi took advantage of this Friday to say goodbye to all his players and the Al Sadd board of directors during a lunch in which he ended up quite shocked where he could not help crying. There was a moment of great sadness for all those present at that meal.
The new Barça coach spent four years as an Al Sadd player and two and a half years as a coach, where he won eleven titles in total. Xavi would be leaving Qatar this Saturday where he will travel to Barcelona, where he will be able to see Barcelona's match against Celta in Balaídos.
This will be the last meeting directed by Sergi Barjuan with the senior team. This is how the interim technician acknowledged yesterday the following: "When you have such a good candy you have to taste it, and it hurts to leave it, but I already had an expiration date".
With the arrival of Xavi Hernández to the Barça team, it's hoped to bring joy again for the team. A team that is currently going through one of its worst moments in history and that clearly translates into a great challenge for Xavi, who is still considered a technician without much experience.
Everything will be a matter of the former Barça player in which he is in charge of showing that he has all the skills to lead a club of this size. Its main objective is to return Barcelona to Champions League positions and advance to the round of 16 of that competition.
