Eto'o welcomes Xavi 'home' as new Barcelona coach

Cameroon legend Samuel Eto’o has welcomed his former teammate Xavi back to Barcelona as the new club manager.

The Spanish giants are working to confirm the signing of the 41-year-old after Qatar Stars League club Al Sadd confirmed his departure on Friday.

Barcelona executives jetted out to the Middle East earlier this week to hold negotiations with Al Sadd and the Qatari club have confirmed that they have found an agreement after the payment of his contract termination clause.

"Club administration have approved the transfer of Xavi to Barcelona after the payment of the clause stipulated in his contract. Xavi is considered an important part of our history and we wish him every success in the future,” the Qatari club announced on Twitter.

Eto'o has swiftly taken a step to welcome Xavi to Camp Nou with a picture of their celebration after they won the 2008-09 Champions League title in Rome.

Ronald Koeman was sacked as Barcelona coach on October 27 after they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Rayo Vallecano – which was their fifth loss of the season.

Sergi Barjuan has been acting in an interim role, overseeing the Blaugrana’s last two matches which ended in a 1-1 draw against Alaves in La Liga and a 1-0 win over Dinamo Kiev in the Uefa Champions League.

After developing through Barcelona's academy in the 90s, Xavi spent the majority of his professional career at Camp Nou.

He played 767 matches for the club with a contribution of 85 goals and 185 assists in all competitions between 1997 and 2015.

The former Spain midfielder is also considered as one of the most decorated players in Barcelona's history, with a record of 25 trophies that includes eight La Liga titles and four Champions League trophies.

His managerial career has got off to a flying start at Al Sadd where he clinched five trophies since his appointment in 2019.

Last season, he helped the Wolf lift the domestic double of the Qatar Stars League title and the Qatar Cup.