La Liga giants Barcelona are doing their best to convince their manager Xavi Hernandez to remain with the club past this summer. According to influential Catalan media outlet Mundo Deportivo, Barca’s latest attempt to make Xavi change his mind is a move for Manchester City’s star striker Erling Haaland.
Xavi announced his decision to step down as Barca manager back in January following a series of poor results. But since then, the club embarked on an 11-game unbeaten run that included advancing to the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League. Barcelona’s brass has been impressed with the turnaround and now wants to continue building under club legend.
Reportedly, the move for Haaland would be part of an extensive recruitment plan for the future. Barca would attempt to sign the player in the summer of 2025 and believe the 23-year-old Norwegian is interested in coming to Camp Nou. Haaland was linked with Barca in 2021, but decided to stay with Borussia Dortmund for another season before joining City.
It remains to be seen whether the promise of Haaland will be enough to keep Xavi in his post. Poor results were just part of the reason why he wanted to step down, with the outside pressure and frequent criticism that comes with the position also playing a role.
Haaland is enjoying another prolific campaign with City, scoring 29 goals in all competitions in 2023-24. He is under contract with the club through 2027 but reportedly has an undisclosed exit clause.
