Xavi denies Barcelona president’s pressure behind squad changes for Royal Antwerp clash – report

Over the past couple of days, there has been a lot of chatter about developing unrest and concern within the Barcelona administration over the team’s situation.

The 2-4 defeat to Girona on Sunday has seemingly ruffled some feathers and generated some doubt regarding manager Xavi Hernandez, who continues to insist that the team is still under construction.

Squad changes for Royal Antwerp clash

Following the defeat to Girona, Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez announced the squad list for tonight’s clash versus Royal Antwerp on Monday.

The 43-year-old had opted to leave out key individuals like Ilkay Gundogan, Ronald Araujo, Robert Lewandowski, and Frenkie de Jong from the squad list.

But on Tuesday, three of the aforementioned quartet – Gundogan, Lewandowski, and Araujo – were added to the squad list, while De Jong was left out as he was down with a fever.

It was soon suggested that Xavi was forced to make these changes to the squad by Barcelona president Joan Laporta, who felt that the team would be sending the wrong message by resting key players after a disappointing defeat.

Xavi denies Laporta’s involvement

Now, a fresh report from TV3 is claiming that is not the case.

As per the report, Xavi has denied Joan Laporta’s impositions on the squad for the Antwerp-Barça game.

The coach’s entourage has responded to the information that the extension of the list was agreed upon by three parties, Xavi, Deco, and the president.

The decision is said to have been taken for logistical reasons for the return trip, delayed until Thursday to allow the players to rest and to improve the cohesion of the group, which was affected by the defeat against Girona.

With the same intention of burying the controversy of the squad list, the club describes the relationship between Xavi and Laporta as excellent, despite some critical voices that have occasionally arisen within the board of directors due to the team’s play or the coach’s post-match analysis.