Qatari club Al Sadd on Friday responded to speculation that Xavi Hernandez could very soon be appointed as the new coach of Barcelona, insisting that the Spaniard remains "fully focused" on his current club.
"In response to what's circulating recently, the #AlSadd management reaffirms that Xavi has a two-year contract with the club and is fully focused on the team's upcoming matches, to maintain our lead at the top of the league and to defend the title," tweeted the Doha-based outfit.
The 41-year-old, who is due to take charge of his team's game in the Qatar Stars League on Saturday, is under contract with Al Sadd until 2023.
He has been tipped to return to the club where he starred as a player and take over as coach following the sacking earlier this week of Dutchman Ronald Koeman due to a poor run of results.
Earlier reports from The Guardian suggested that Xavi had accepted the offer from Barcelona and the deal is due to be confirmed once agreement is reached to terminate his contract with Al Sadd.
Barcelona's Spanish President Joan Laporta (L) and Barcelona's Spanish interim head coach Sergi Barjuan address a press conference in Barcelona, Spain, October 29, 2021. /CFP
Barcelona are currently ninth in La Liga, six points outside the top four.
They are third in their Champions League group with three points from three matches after suffering 3-0 defeats in their opening two games against Bayern Munich and Benfica.
Barcelona are five-times European champions and the results marked the first time in the club's history that they had failed to score in their opening two European games.
Sergi Barjuan is now the interim manager of the Catalan club.
Al Sadd's coach Xavi Hernandez (L) shakes hands with defender Pedro "Ro-Ro" Miguel after the Amir Cup final against Al-Arabi in Al-Rayyan, Qatar, December 18, 2020. /CFP
Barca president Joan Laporta on Friday admitted he would like to have Xavi as coach at some point during his presidency.
However, he refused to confirm that Xavi will succeed Koeman and maintained Barca have "other options."
"I said it when he went to Qatar, that Xavi would end up being the coach of Barca; in fact, I would like him to be coach of Barca during my presidency – what I don't know is when," said Laporta.
Xavi is from the suburbs of Barcelona, came through their famed youth system and played 17 seasons and more than 750 games for the club before leaving for Qatar in 2015.
After playing four seasons for Al Sadd, he took over as manager in 2019 and led them to a league title last season. They won the Amir Cup last week, beating Al Rayyan on penalties in the final.
(With input from agencies)