FC Barcelona have appointed the club’s B team coach Sergi Barjuan as the interim coach of the club’s senior team while they continue their search for a permanent coach.
Recall that the Spanish giants sacked Dutch tactician Ronald Koeman on Wednesday night, October 27, due to a poor run of games.
Koeman spent about 14 months at FC Barcelona before he was asked to go after a 1-2 home defeat at the hands of Real Madrid on October 24, and a 1-0 away defeat at the hands of Rayo Vallecano on October 27.
The two consecutive league defeats dragged FC Barcelona to the 9th spot on the league table with 15 points in 10 games. Koeman led Barcelona to record two defeats out of three Champions League games this season. The club has also recorded three defeats, three draws and four league wins under his watch this season.
These stats proved that Koeman could not do much with the club’s current squad, hence, the club had to terminate his contract which ought to expire on June 30, 2022.
In his place, FC Barcelona are trying to bring in Xavi Hernandez who is currently the coach of Qatari club, Al Sadd. The former FC Barcelona midfielder is willing to return to the club as a coach but FC Barcelona are yet to reach an agreement with the Spanish tactician and his current club.
The negotiation might take longer than expected, hence, Sergi Barjuan who was in charge of FC Barcelona team B will lead the club until the club seals a deal with Xavi.
A statement from FC Barcelona says: “His interim position as first-team head coach will end as soon as the club has hired a full-time head coach.”
Barjuan who played for FC Barcelona from the club’s academy level to the club’s senior team between 1990 and 2002, was introduced to the team on Thursday, October 28.
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 28, 2021
After meeting with the club’s senior team for the first time as the club’s interim coach, he led the players in their first training session ahead of their league game against Alaves.
The Spanish La Liga game is expected to kick off at 20:00 on Saturday, October 30. Before the game, Barjuan is expected to be involved in the game’s pre-match press conference later today, October 29.
Sergi Barjuan was a left-back player during his playing days. He played majorly for FC Barcelona where he made over 267 appearances and scored at least 6 goals before in joined Atletico Madrid in 2002.
Best goals of Sergi Barjuan for Barça pic.twitter.com/qGcfAibXkZ
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 28, 2021
He spent three years in Atletico Madrid before he retired from professional football. He also played for Spain national team 56 times before he retired from international football in 2002.
After his retirement, the 49-year-old ex-footballer went into coaching in 2009 starting with the Barcelona youth team. Afterward, Barjuan went on to coach a series of clubs including Almería and Mallorca before he returned to Barcelona in 2021 to coach the club’s B team.
Handshakes & hard work
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 29, 2021
👀 #BarçaAlaves pic.twitter.com/w8jDkm7oJ1
