Matteo Moretto Transfer Column: Rafael Marquez future, Luka Modric and consequences of Xavi stay

Matteo Moretto gives Football España exclusive information on the latest deals dominating the papers in Spain, as revealed in Fabrizio Romano’s Daily Briefing.

There was a time during the recent months, between when Xavi announced his exit and Wednesday, when it seemed certain, that Rafael Marquez would be the next manager of Barcelona. He was the number one candidate to replace Xavi for certain.

Barcelona liked his style of work, he speaks the language, he knows exactly what Barcelona means as a club, he is working very well with the youngsters. It seemed like a decision that had been made.

Then in the last few days, with Xavi changing his decision – we reported the meeting that was to be held on Wednesday exclusively – where the feeling Laporta had changed. Above all, the club understood that perhaps Xavi could stay in the end.

Marquez has a contract that expires, they are negotiating the renewal, they still don’t have it done, but Barcelona want him to stay as they think he’s the perfect person to keep developing the project at Barca Atletic. No doubt he is probably disappointed, they spoke with him about it, Deco is delighted with his work, but until Xavi had made his mind up, everything was on the table.

It’s possible he has offers, but one thing is teams sounding out someone, and another is an actual offer. There are teams that are impressed with his work though. For now, he is focused on Barcelona and the project, but it will depend on the offers that arrive for him this summer, and what type of offers they are.

We have spoken a lot about Hector Fort in recent months. The continuity of Xavi will mean that Fort will almost certainly renew his deal, and the decision to stick with him is a signal that Barcelona will