Barcelona squad 'stopped trusting' Koeman, admits Mingueza

Oscar Mingueza has admitted that the Barcelona squad "stopped trusting" Ronald Koeman towards the end of his reign at Camp Nou.

Koeman's 14-month tenure came to an end following a 1-0 loss to Rayo Vallecano last month, with that result all but ending Barca's chances in the Liga title race.

The Dutchman failed to steady the ship after turbulent summer that saw the likes of Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann leave the club, and Mingueza says he also lost the faith of his dressing room.

What's been said?

The Spanish defender, who reportedly grew disillusioned with Koeman after he was substituted in harsh fashion in a clash with Getafe last season, has conceded that a change in the dugout was necessary to address Barca's recent slide.

"The dressing room needed a change," Mingueza has told Esport3. "There was no atmosphere. Players were not happy. And when you're not well and things don't turn out, you need a change.

"The team stopped trusting [Koeman's methods] and everyone tried to fix things on their own. We weren't good, neither individually nor collectively.

"When the dynamics aren't good, everyone does what they can but we lacked self-belief."

Mingueza on Xavi

Barca moved quickly to bring Xavi back to Camp Nou as their next permanent manager, with a club legend handed a two-and-a-half-year deal after parting ways with Qatari outfit Al Sadd.

Xavi is set to take charge of his first game when the Blaugrana take on Espanyol this weekend, and Mingueza is confident that he will have an instant impact.

"Xavi's training is very focused on the idea of ​​what we want to do on the pitch," he said. "It is good that we have a clear idea and that we all work in a specific way to obtain a good result as a team.

"I'm sure things will change and get better now. And I don't think we'll have to wait two or three months to see those changes. Starting this weekend, we'll see new things."

Further reading