Lionel Messi has reportedly urged Barcelona to appoint his compatriot Marcelo Gallardo as the replacement for Xavi Hernandez. As reported by El Nacional, the Argentine superstar wants his former club to bring in the former River Plate manager.
Barcelona have a major decision to make ahead of this summer as they need to replace their departing manager Xavi Hernandez. While the Blaugrana are not having the best season under the Spaniard, they seemed to be in no hurry to make a managerial change.
However, Xavi has already announced his decision to step down at the end of the season, which means that the Blaugrana have to find the right man to replace the club legend. Another club legend and arguably the greatest footballer of all time, Lionel Messi, has reportedly urged the Barca board to consider Marcelo Gallardo as the top candidate for the job.
Gallardo had a pretty impressive career as a player, having played for clubs like River Plate, Monaco, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) while also earning 44 caps for Argentina. He has impressed as a manager at River Plate and is currently the manager of Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad.
Regarded very highly as a manager who likes his team to play on the front foot, Gallardo is seen as the perfect fit for Barcelona by Lionel Messi. As per El Nacional, Gallardo would be open to leaving Al-Ittihad if he receives an offer from the Blaugrana.
Deco names the perfect Sergio Busquets replacement for Barcelona
Barcelona sporting director Deco has named Manchester City midfielder Rodri as the perfect potential replacement for Sergio Busquets at the Catalan club. Busquets left the Blaugrana last summer after serving the club for more than 15 years.
Barca have struggled to replace Busquets, a task Deco has insisted that is almost impossible. The Catalan giants signed Oriol Romeu from Girona in 2023 as a short-term solution but it has not worked out.
Deco has named Manchester City star Rodri as the perfect replacement for Busquets but claimed that the Cityzens would never sell him. The former Portugal international said, as quoted by Football Transfers:
“It’s almost impossible to replace Busquets. Rodri is the closest but City would never sell him to any club! Kimmich is another top player… but it’s also not easy to sign him. Look at how much Chelsea paid for Caicedo, it’s not easy at all.”
Busquets left the Catalan giants last summer to join Lionel Messi at Inter Miami, where the duo have also linked with former teammates Jordi Alba and Luis Suarez. Busquets was integral to everything Barcelona and Spain achieved, with the midfielder winning every single trophy for both club and country.
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