Barcelona captain admits he hopes Xavi will stay as manager beyond this season

Speaking to DAZN ahead of Sunday’s El Clasico against Real Madrid Barcelona goalkeeper and second captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen claimed that he hopes to see Xavi stay on as manager.

Xavi announced his decision to leave Barcelona at the end of the season back in January itself. And even though the team has picked up form and the club administration wants him to continue, the manager has not changed his mind.

There is a meeting scheduled after El Clasico between Xavi and the management where the club will seek clarity over his future and come to a decision on the direction the club will go.

Ter Stegen hopes Xavi will continue

Ter Stegen has seen both sides of Xavi, having played with him as a teammate and now under his management. And the German goalkeeper stated that he has a lot of affection for the club legend and that he hopes Xavi stays.

“I respect him a lot in general as a person and a coach, and as he was once a colleague of mine on the field, I have a lot of affection for him,” he said.

“We lived a lot of things together and of course, I hope he stays, but in the end, it is a decision that he must make, he must think about it well.”

Ter Stegen hopes Xavi stays as manager (Photo by PAU BARRENA/AFP via Getty Images)

Ter Stegen also alluded to the fact there is still some communication happening between Xavi and the club before vowing to do everything as a team to succeed under the former midfielder.

“As for the club and him, it seems that they are in communication, and we hope that they will make the right decision for everyone and that the matter will end with everyone’s satisfaction,” he said.

“Of course, we will do everything we can to achieve success with him.”

Ter Stegen on Gundogan-Araujo issue

Ter Stegen also had his say on the noise surrounding Ilkay Gundogan’s statements after the PSG loss and the subsequent rumours of a rift in the dressing room, saying:

“Now there is no problem. I think the good thing is that we are in the dressing room and this was said from the beginning, and these are things that we talk about at the time. There is nothing to worry about, we can all have our own opinion and in the end it is good to discuss it.

“Although there may be things that some may like and others may not, they should be discussed and that’s what we always do. Talking things out always solves the issue before it gets worse, and we handle things this way and in this case the two of them did it.”