Jorge Mendes, Jose Mourinho’s agent, has put the Portuguese manager up to replace Xavi at Barcelona.
On Tuesday, January 16, the legendary manager was sacked by Roma and shown the exit door from Stadio Olimpico.
The 60-year-old manager was fired after taking the team to consecutive European finals. Roma decided to relieve Mourinho of his duties at the end after the club dropped to ninth place in Serie A.
After falling out with teams including Tottenham, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Real Madrid, Mourinho has been fired for the sixth time in his career.
However, his agent is reportedly considering a surprise move to have the former Porto manager take over at Barcelona, Madrid’s bitter rivals.
Barca have reaffirmed their support for manager Xavi, but things could change quickly. The Catalan giants are currently fourth in La Liga, much below than they should be. They face Napoli in the next round of the Champions League and an elimination could cost Xavi his job.
Xavi is going through one of the most challenging periods in his management career and according to some reports, has lost the dressing room.
Although Mourinho is supposedly being considered, Athletic Bilbao manager Rafa Marquez is supposedly the front-runner for the Camp Nou position.
According to Spanish outlet El Nacional, Barcelona will not entertain Mourinho’s agent’s request because of his complex history with the club.
His 2011 violent incident with Tito Vilanova, the assistant of Barca manager Pep Guardiola at the time, was one major scandal.
At the Camp Nou, after Lionel Messi’s winning goal, there was a fight when Mourinho jabbed Vilanova in the eye.
Thiago Motta and Rafa Marquez, two of Xavi’s former Barcelona colleagues, could succeed him at Camp Nou.
More must-reads: