Former Barcelona Midfielder Could Beat Xavi, Pochettino To Replace Quique Setien As Club’s Boss

Netherlands soccer team’s head coach Ronald Koeman could become FC Barcelona’s new manager ahead of the 2020-21 season, according to Spanish soccer expert Guillem Balague.

Barcelona sacked Quique Setien after their humiliating 8-2 loss to Bayern Munich in the quarter-final of the 2019-20 Champions League. The Catalans have not won the prestigious European title since 2015.

Setien, who was made in charge of the club in January after the Catalans sacked Ernesto Valverde, failed to lead the side to any title in the 2019-20 season. It is for the first time since 2007, Barcelona have failed to claim a single trophy in the whole campaign.

Spanish radio station Cadena COPE has confirmed that Barcelona President Josep Bartomeu told them that Setien had been sacked and a board meeting is due to take place Monday for further discussions.

It was earlier reported that former Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino and Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez are in the race to become the next boss at Barcelona. According to BBC Sport, Balague has disclosed that Barcelona have approached Pochettino, but he believes the Dutchman Koeman, who rejected the job from Barcelona in January, could beat the two to become Setien’s successor at Barcelona.

"The board will meet tomorrow and [Setien] will be sacked. They have to choose a manager because in two weeks' time pre-season starts - and the talk is Koeman could be the man. He said no to an offer in January, but this is different. I think his health situation may have played a part. Discussions may be taking place, we may hear tomorrow, but he will need to separate from the national side so there is still a wait for that to happen," Balague, who also said that Koeman’s appointment will make everyone in the club happy, told BBC 5 Live Euro Leagues Podcast.

Koeman, who was impressive both as a midfielder and defender during his playing days, represented Barcelona between 1989 and 1995, where he won several trophies including four La Liga titles. He also played for Dutch clubs such as PSV and Ajax.

It is understood that even though Pochettino is being considered for Barcelona’s manager role, his appointment will not go well with the fans citing his history as both a player and manager for local rivals Espanyol.