Why Barcelona's new manager search has been boiled down to just two shock options in quest to replace Xavi - explained

Joan Laporta and company have been hard at work searching for a replacement for the outgoing club legend and the search has reportedly been narrowed down to just two options despite having been linked with the likes of Julian Nagelsmann, Hansi Flick, Roberto De Zerbi and Ruben Amorim among others. The two options as per SPORT are: signing Barca Atletic boss Rafa Marquez for the first team or Xavi potentially reversing his decision to leave the Catalan side this summer.

Barcelona's financial crisis is as well documented as can be and that is one of the reasons why Laporta and sporting director Deco have been looking to convince Xavi to stay at the club for at least another year. The 44-year-old had joined Barca during the peak of their financial crisis and reportedly signed on for a staggeringly low wage compared to some of his predecessors. Xavi's relatively low wages help the club out financially, while also having a Barcelona legend at the helm aligns with the successful model that Laporta employed during his first tenure at the club. Another reason for wanting to keep Xavi is the fact that despite the mediocre season this time around, Xavi has already won the league once and is believed to have the potential to turn around the situation once again.

As per the report from SPORT, Marquez is being considered as the second option due to his relationship with both Laporta and Deco, in addition to his understanding and knowledge of Barca Atletic and the club's philosophy of promoting their young talents into the first team. Another obvious reason is that the Mexican would also be on a relatively low wage similar to Xavi. He also employs Jorge Mendes as his agent, who is also a good friend of Laporta's and should aid the shift to the first team contractually.

On Monday morning, Laporta was spotted at the Barcelona training grounds, minutes before the start of the first team's last training session ahead of the Paris Saint-Germain clash. The 61-year-old walked over to the coaching staff and embraced them. The move could be seen as another sign of Laporta trying to gain back Xavi's confidence to try and make him stay at the club, or on the other hand, as an embrace to thank his coaching staff for their efforts ahead of the massive clash.

The club's first option remains the retention of Xavi past this summer, and their next few weeks could well determine his future, although the Spaniard has refuted all claims that he might reverse his decision to leave. Barcelona will be next in action when they take on Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, April 16 in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final clash.