According to reports, Juventus and AC Milan are interested in hiring Thiago Motta as their next head coach, but Barcelona has some hopeful news.
Calciomercato.com recalls that Xavi Hernandez has already confirmed his departure from Barcelona at the conclusion of the season, and various sources have indicated that Motta is one of his probable replacements.
However, Barca’s sporting director Deco’s recent statements to the newspaper La Vanguardia appear to severely undermine the Motta hypothesis: “I don’t follow his work on a daily basis, and I haven’t seen many Bologna matches.”
It is fantastic news for Juventus and Milan, as both are considering Motta in the event that Massimiliano Allegri and Stefano Pioli’s tenures finish in June.
As we wrote in a recent Substack update and have reported in recent weeks, the only name really considered by Milan management to succeed Pioli is Motta, not Antonio Conte or any of the other names mentioned.
When asked about Barcelona’s future coach in general, Deco stated, “We haven’t spoken to anyone yet.” It will have to be someone who supports our project and provides outstanding and ambitious football.
“Rafa Marquez?” He’s here with us; he’s young and growing healthily. He has greatly improved and will continue to do so.
“Jurgen Klopp? He is an excellent coach, but I don’t think now is the time to discuss it. We have numerous possibilities on the table, and we will discuss them later.
Deco’s interview with La Vanguardia began with the issue of Xavi and finished with the statement: “We are still surprised by his choice to leave, given that we were planning next season with him.”
The tight relationship between Barcelona President Joan Laporta and the prominent Portuguese prosecutor Jorge Mendes, for whom Deco worked first as a colleague and subsequently as a partner, may lead to Sergio Conceiçao being hired from Porto.
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