Barcelona went through a tough season, ending without winning any trophies. However, the fans of the Catalonia region had something to celebrate at the end of the season.
The saga of Barcelona and their coach Xavi Hernandez caused a great deal of confusion. After the coach announced his departure at the end of the season, he reversed his decision under pressure from club president Joan Laporta and agreed to continue the project of building a young team.
But after the team's loss to their neighbor Girona (2-4), Xavi stated that it was impossible for Barcelona to compete with Real Madrid and the top European clubs, given the administrative and economic conditions the club was facing. This statement angered Laporta.
As a result, the club issued a statement announcing that Xavi would not continue with the Catalan team next season.
Xavi Disappoints Catalonia
Xavi failed in his mission with Barcelona this season, despite leading the team to win the Spanish league title last season. After the drama surrounding his change of decision, it will be difficult for him to take on the task of coaching another team in the near future.
In light of Xavi's failure, Catalonia's fans watched with regret as two of the best coaches in the region's history contended for the English Premier League title until the final round of the competition.
Pep Guardiola managed to lead Manchester City to win the English Premier League title for the fourth consecutive time this season, after fierce competition from Arsenal, which is coached by another Catalan coach, Mikel Arteta.
Guardiola: The Greatest Coach
Guardiola, who won the Champions League with Barcelona twice as a coach, continues to break records despite failing to help Manchester City retain the FA Cup after losing to Manchester United in the final (1-2) on Sunday evening.
Guardiola has won six Premier League titles since moving to coach Manchester City in 2016. While some say the club's finances supported him by attracting the best players, the facts indicate otherwise.
If we exclude Erling Haaland, we find that City bought players who were not at the top of the football pyramid, but later turned into the brightest stars of the game, such as Kevin De Bruyne, Kyle Walker, Ederson, and Bernardo Silva.
The team also succeeded in selling a large number of players, demonstrating Guardiola's ability to create a suitable environment for achieving financial stability in the club.
Arteta: A Project for an Exceptional Coach
Arteta, on his part, had enough time to build a strong team that fiercely competed with Manchester City for the league title in the last two seasons.
Although Arteta has not won any titles recently, he has brought Arsenal back to prominence by qualifying for the Champions League after a long absence, and he was only two points behind Manchester City in the league race.
Arteta, who started his career as a player in Barcelona before roaming European fields, was given the necessary authority to rebuild Arsenal, unlike Xavi who did not have a suitable transfer budget and relied on La Masia academy graduates to fix what he could.
With the success of Guardiola and Arteta in England, Barcelona cries in the corner, regretting letting go of two of their own and lamenting a series of poor decisions that have put the club in an unenviable position.