Barcelona: Jose Mourinho fuels rumours he will replace Xavi

Carlo Garganese

• 21 Jan 2024 14:14 GMT
• 3 min read

Jose Mourinho has fuelled sensational rumours that he will replace Xavi as the manager of Barcelona.

Mourinho was sacked as manager of Roma this week after a bad run of form, and replaced by Daniele De Rossi until the end of the season.

The Special One has since been heavily linked with a move to Napoli, Saudi Arabian club Al Shabab, while he has also been connected to Newcastle and the Brazil national team.

But there have also been sensational reports that he could replace Xavi as manager of Barcelona.

Xavi is under severe pressure at Barca after a very disappointing season so far, with the Blaugrana off the pace in the La Liga title race.

And Mourinho has fuelled rumours of a return to the club he worked at in the 1990s.

Mourinho is currently in Barcelona. While at the airport he was intercepted by El Chiringuito and asked about the rumours of him taking over at Barca.

To this, Mourinho smiled without denying the news. This has further fuelled the reports, as has the fact that Mourinho’s agent Jorge Mendes has excellent relations with the Blaugrana.

Mourinho at Roma

Mourinho was sacked by Roma after a dismal run of form, which had seen the Giallorossi drop to ninth in the Serie A table.

Roma had picked up just one win from their previous six Serie A games before his sacking, and they were also eliminated from the Coppa Italia last week by city rivals Lazio.

Mourinho had a mixed time at Roma after arriving in the summer of 2021.

He led the club to historic back-to-back European finals, winning the UEFA Conference League in 2022 and being runners-up on penalties to Sevilla in the Europa League in 2023.

However, in Serie A, Roma had been very disappointing. They finished sixth both in 2021-22 and 2022-23, failing to qualify for the Champions League.