Xavi Addresses FC Barcelona Referee Payment Allegations And Manchester United Ahead Of Europa League Tie

FC Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez has defended his club after reports of allegedly paying the former vice president of the Referees Committee arose on Wednesday.

Barca take on Manchester United in a Europa League playoff first leg at Camp Nou on Thursday. Naturally, with the news breaking less than an hour before he faced local media, Xavi was probed on it in his pre-match press conference.

Asked if the information had reached the locker room, Xavi said that he tries “to focus on football, but the club has these things”.

“The club has made a statement, so in line with the club, [I have] no more [to say]. They are years in which I was not in the club, but I defend it, without more,” he added.

Xavi left Barca for Al-Sadd in 2015, but the payments totaling $1.5mn were allegedly made to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira through his DASNIL 95 company from 2016 to 2018 while former president Josep Bartomeu was still in charge.

Barca deny wrongdoing, and said in the mentioned statement that they “hired the services of an external technical consultant in the past, who supplied, in video format, technical reports referring to lower-category players in Spain for the Club’s technical secretariat”.

“Additionally, the relationship with the external provider itself was extended with technical reports related to professional arbitration in order to complement the information required by the coaching staff of the first team and the reserves, a common practice in professional football clubs,” it added.

Xavi contributed further by saying that “we always analyze the referees” which “is not new”. “We already do that at the club internally,” he explained.

Back to tomorrow’s opponents, Xavi was asked if Manchester United were a “Champions League team”.

“Neither one nor the other have earned the right to be in the Champions League, so it is unfair to say this,” he answered regarding the Catalans and the Mancunians.

“But it is a very strong Manchester, and it was about time we see a Manchester like that,” he added, in reference to the solid work “great coach” Erik ten Hag has done with the Red Devils since taking over in 2022.

Calling United striker Marcus Rashford one of the best in-form players in Europe and “one of the most dangerous”, Xavi touched on his midfielder Frenkie de Jong almost joining the Red Devils last summer.

Barca were said to have accepted an €80mn ($85.6mn) offer for their playmaker in mid-July, but the Dutchman then refused to leave after reportedly citing United’s lack of Champions League football and a desire to succeed under Xavi as primary motives for his decision.

“He was very clear, he told me that he wanted to stay,” Xavi revealed. “And I am satisfied with him because he is in a good moment. I think he is having a good time and that is very important.”

As Sergio Busquets is injured, De Jong is set to command Barca in the center of the park and provide pivot support to a more advanced Pedri and Gavi with Frenck Kessie by his side.