Jordi Cruyff will not renew his contract with FC Barcelona as confirmed in an official statement from the club, which leaves the Catalans without a sporting director as things stand.
In a press release sent out to members of the media on Tuesday afternoon, Barca revealed that Cruyff will not extend his current deal because of “the desire to undertake new professional projects”.
“This is what he communicated this morning to the president of the entity, Joan Laporta, in an emotional meeting in which Cruyff argued his departure in search of new challenges after two seasons at Barca,” the club further explained.
Cruyff has apparently offered to help Barca in their transition towards a new executive structure and, like his fellow outgoing director Mateu Alemany, close “pending operations in the summer market”.
Barca noted that across his two seasons at Camp Nou, Cruyff’s work “has been very valuable in football decisions and in the reconstruction of the first team”.
“In addition, he has been a very close person to the coaches and the technical staff that the Club has had,” it concluded, before thanking Cruyff for his “important contribution as a member of the Sports Commission” while wishing him “the best of luck in his new professional path”.
As lightly touched on, Cruyff is the second big behind-the-scenes figure to announce his departure after Alemany communicated he will not continue at the club ahead of a switch to Aston Villa according to The Athletic.
Alemany was hailed as a transfer market guru for overseeing much needed player exits and being behind the landing of several stars such as Robert Lewandowski, Jules Kounde and Raphinha who helped Barca seal a first La Liga title in four years away at Espanyol on Sunday.
But as the statement suggested, Cruyff, who is the son of Barca legend Johan Cruyff, deserves his fair share of credit for the club’s recent resurgence too.
“I have tremendous faith in him,” first team coach Xavi Hernandez said before the Espanyol clash. “I think he’s a loyal professional, really capable and effective with his job.”
“He’s been a pivotal figure in the club. Personally, he’s helped me a lot. Whether he stays or leaves, he has to be rated,” Xavi demanded.
As things stand, Barca don’t have a replacement lined up for Cruyff amid Deco being linked to Alemany’s director of football role.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomsanderson/2023/05/16/jordi-cruyff-leaves-fc-barcelona-who-no-longer-have-a-sporting-director/