Manchester United have held talks with Barcelona legend Xabi about replacing Erik ten Hag as manager, according to reports.
Ten Hag remains under huge pressure at Old Trafford despite Saturday’s much-needed victory over Brentford.
Manchester United have endured a miserable start to the 2024-25 campaign and sit just 12th in the Premier League with three wins from eight games.
Ten Hag may well have been fearing the worst when Brentford took the lead over his struggling United side at Old Trafford but the Red Devils fought back superbly to clinch a crucial victory.
It remains to be seen whether Manchester United can use that as a springboard for further success, however, and the club have suffered several false dawns before under the Dutchman.
United interviewed other managers about replacing Ten Hag last summer but have shown patience with the 54-year-old this season and resisted the urge to make a change during the recent international break.
But Manchester United appear to be keeping their options open and have held talks with Xavi ‘twice in the last few months’, according to the Daily Mail.
Xavi, widely regarded as one of the best midfielders of all time, has been out of work since being sacked by Barcelona in May.
At the start of 2024, Xavi said he was going to leave his position at the Nou Camp but was then persuaded to stay by Barcelona bosses.
But it was decided he would move on following a difficult period on and off the pitch, with Barca appointing Germany’s Hansi Flick as his replacement.
Xavi was a mainstay in the Barcelona team for well over a decade and won eight La Liga titles and four Champions League trophies during his celebrated spell at the club.
Manchester United have publicly insisted that they are backing Ten Hag to turn things around but may pull the plug if they believe European qualification is at jeopardy.
Ten Hag, meanwhile, described the speculation over his future as ‘fairytales and lies’ in his pre-match press conference ahead of the visit of Brentford.
‘The noise is only coming from some of you, creating stories and fairytales and bringing lies,’ the ex-Ajax manager said.
‘I know we are on one page at this club. I said this before the break. I told several journalists. Probably the journalists didn’t believe me because I saw the reports. But internally, it is quiet.’
More to follow…
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