Difficulties remain for manager that Barcelona players want above all others

Once Xavi departs from Barcelona at the end of the current campaign, the dressing room have apparently already made it known who they want to replace him.

The legendary midfielder has endured an awful 2023/24 season after winning the Spanish league title in his opening campaign.

Injuries have hampered the Catalans a little, but in truth, Xavi’s lack of tactical nous and ability to change the course of matches is what’s eventually caught up with him.

Though leaving at the end of this season has been his own decision, there is very much a feeling that he has jumped before he was pushed.

The opposite was true of Luis Enrique, who got out of the club whilst they were still winning trophies with incredible regularity.

Barcelona players want Luis Enrique as manager

Now at Paris Saint-Germain, Luis Enrique was in charge of the Barcelona side when Xavi made his last-ever appearance at the club – the 2015 Champions League final.

It’s perhaps the memories of that great win and other epic encounters that’s seen the current crop of stars make it absolutely clear to the club that they want Luis Enrique back at the helm, per Fichajes.

The difficulty for the club is that they have no money to spend, and PSG are hardly likely to allow their manager to walk away for nothing with a year still left on his contract.

Furthermore, with Kylian Mbappe leaving the French giants, a new dawn brings the promise of great things, and the manager just might find that more appealing than a (former) club that are still emerging as a force in La Liga and European football.