Xavi Hernández is a person who is grateful and committed to his projects. Hence, he does not intend to leave Al Sadd stranded immediately to catch the Blaugrana ship. The first step that he will take, once he has spoken and closed the conditions with Joan Laporta, will be to meet with the owner of the Qatari club, Mohammed bin Hamad Royal, to reach an agreement on his departure from the entity. Xavi does not have a free release clause: in fact there is a fixed amount for his departure since his last renewal, But the Egarense has the promise of the owner of the club that they will not hinder him in the event that the one who knocks on the door is Barcelona, opening the possibility of even letting him leave for free.
Once the exit has been agreed, it will not take place immediately. Xavi’s intention is to say goodbye to his fans next Saturday in the game he will play against Al Ahli at home. It will undoubtedly be one of the most emotional moments of his time in Qatar where he has spent more than six years at the Doha club, almost four as a player and just over two as a coach. Not in vain has he won eleven titles with Al Sadd: four as a footballer and captain, and seven as a coach.
But he will still have one last act of service: playing on November 3 at the home of Al Duhail, the second in the standings. In case of victory, Al Sadd would leave the leader alone, six points behind the chaser, and clear favorite to revalidate the QSL title.
In addition, we must not forget that Xavi’s link with Qatar goes beyond Al Sadd, since the legendary Barcelona player is an ambassador for the Qatar 2022 World Cup, so his idea is to maintain good relations with the rulers of the country.
Thus, if his plans are not altered, Xavi could land on November 4 in Barcelona and be presented that same day or at the latest the next. We are talking between Thursday or Friday of next week. If these dates are confirmed, it seems complicated that Xavi could lead the team against Celta on Saturday, so his intention would be to take the team from Sunday, taking advantage of the national team stoppage, thus being the derby against Espanyol on November 20, his first official match on the FC Barcelona bench.
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Xavi’s ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ with Al Sadd