Barcelona have announced the appointment of Hansi Flick as their new manager following the departure of Xavi.
The former Germany and Bayern Munich boss has penned a two-year deal with the club after a tumultuous few weeks at the Nou Camp.
Xavi had originally announced in January that he was going to depart his role in the summer, before Barcelona president Joan Laporta convinced the club legend to stay in April.
However, the former Spanish midfielder then publicly criticised Barcelona’s financial position, infuriating Laporta, who decided to sack Xavi last Friday.
The 44-year-old led the Catalan giants to a 2-1 win against Sevilla in the last game of the season on Sunday to secure a second place finish in LaLiga, before the final details of his departure were ironed out.
Barcelona have announced the appointment of Hansi Flick as their new manager
Flick has signed a two-year deal with the Catalan giants as he makes his return to the dugout
The former Germany and Bayern Munich boss replaces Xavi, who was sacked last week
Barcelona confirmed Xavi’s departure in a statement on Wednesday afternoon where they ‘thanked him and the rest of the coaching staff for their commitment, dedication and generosity, and for their help in reaching an agreement to sever the contract’.
Just 23 minutes later, the Catalan giants then unveiled Flick through a video on their social media channels, with the German looking at the camera before he said: ‘Cules, it is our moment, forza Barca!’
In a statement, Barcelona said: ‘By bringing Hansi Flick as coach, FC Barcelona have chosen a man well known for his team’s high pressing, intense and daring style of play which has brought him great success at club level and international level, winning pretty much all there is to win in the world of football.’
Flick, who retired in 2000 as a player, originally began his career in the dugout with regional German side Victoria Bammental, where he was player-manager, before he spent five years with Hoffenheim.
After then becoming an assistant boss at several teams, including Red Bull Salzburg, Germany and Bayern Munich, he took the reigns with the Bavarian giants as interim manager in November 2019.
Flick excelled and was kept on permanently, winning an astonishing 70 of his 86 games in charge which saw him lift seven trophies at the club.
This included two Bundesliga titles and the Champions League, while current Barcelona and former Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski scored 103 goals in just 87 games during Flick’s tenure in Bavaria.
Flick had an astonishing record at Bayern, as he lifted seven trophies and won 70 of 86 games
However, he was sacked by Germany last year after a disastrous World Cup group stage exit
He was subsequently appointed as Germany boss in 2021 following Euro 2020.
Despite overseeing a 10-match unbeaten run to start his reign, Germany crashed out in the group stage at the 2022 World Cup.
Although he initially kept his job, further damaging friendly defeats to Poland, Colombia and Japan saw him sacked in September 2023.
Despite the huge opportunity that taking over at the Nou Camp will bring, it won’t be an easy job for Flick, with Barcelona’s well-publicised financial problems likely to hamper his efforts to get the club back to the glory days they enjoyed under Pep Guardiola.
In fact, speaking after his final game in charge of Sunday, Xavi warned of the perils of being Barcelona boss while he also talked up his achievements during nearly three years in the role.
‘To the new manager, I tell you: you will suffer,’ he said after Barca’s 2-1 win over Sevilla. ‘This is a difficult job and you have to be patient.’
He added: ‘I think that our work has not been appreciated enough. I took over when the team was in ninth place, finished the season in second place, and won the league the next season.’
At Bayern, Flick enjoyed a productive relationship with Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski
Barcelona president Joan Laporta (left) will hope Flick is the man to bring the glory days back
Xavi guided Barca to the LaLiga title last season, but they struggled to replicate their domestic success this year as Real Madrid raced ahead to clinch the league.
The 44-year-old departs having won 89 of his 142 games in charge.