Deco was critical of Xavi after Barcelona’s defeat to Girona – report

After dismaying defeats against PSG and Real Madrid in quick succession, Barcelona kissed their hopes of lifting any trophies this season goodbye.

The Catalan giants were presented with an opportunity to save grace and solidify a second-place position in La Liga by defeating Girona, but dropped the ball on that occasion too.

Now, Barcelona runs the risk of closing the campaign outside the top two, which will have detrimental effects financially as the possibility of missing out on qualification for the Spanish Super Cup looms large.

Deco did not hold back against Xavi

Indeed, as per Catalunya Radio Barcelona sporting director Deco directly criticized Xavi after the 4-2 loss to Girona.

Considering Barça suffered from collective disorganization and fell prey to careless individual lapses, Deco’s critique of Xavi highlighted the urgency for cohesion and mental fortitude within the team.

Xavi saw his team collapse against Barcelona. (Photo by LLUIS GENE/AFP via Getty Images)

This would not be the first time the pair have suffered a rift, as Deco and Xavi reportedly have not always seen eye-to-eye on matters.

In fact, reports even previously mentioned that Deco was among those not convinced about Xavi’s continuity.

Deco recognizes that the present team is capable of far more than what it is producing, and that belief may be rooted in his criticism of Xavi.

Laporta was not in the best mood either

In addition to Deco’s frustration, Laporta was reportedly shouting in exasperation, “This cannot be!” outside one of the stadium’s entrances.

It is interesting to note that two important club officials, Deco and Rafa Yuste, were with him as well.

Thus it is fair to say the loss did not sit well with the Barcelona higher-ups ups as Barcelona’s chances of securing crucial additional revenue and their position in the league standings were jeopardized.