Barcelona coach Quique Setien will stay in his job for the time being after talks with president Josep Maria Bartomeu on Friday evening.
Setien is under pressure after Barca lost 2-1 at home to Osasuna on Thursday night and fierce rivals Real Madrid claimed the title with one round still left in LaLiga.
Captain Lionel Messi gave a furious post-match interview at Camp Nou in which he called for change ahead of the Champions League next month and Bartomeu met with Setien on Friday to discuss his future.
Following those talks, Standard Sport understands Setien was told he will remain in charge for the Champions League in August, with Barca in action at home to Napoli in the teams’ last-16 second leg at Camp Nou and a possible quarter-final clash against Bayern Munich ahead after that.
Barca face Alaves away from home in LaLiga on Sunday and will train on Monday and Tuesday, before taking five days off ahead of their European fixture.
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The board hope Barca’s players and technical staff will benefit from the break and are reluctant to change coach again after already replacing Ernesto Valverde with Setien in January.
Messi had said Barcelona would need to ‘change a lot’ if they are to challenge for the Champions League, but with the competition less than three weeks away, there is little time to adapt to the ideas of another coach.
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« I think Setien should continue, » Barcelona legend Carles Rexach said on Friday. « When you change the coach in the middle of the season, it’s terrible for the team. »
On Sunday at Alaves, Setien’s side have nothing to play for in terms of points or objectives in LaLiga, but the coach’s short-term future could depend on the team’s performance at Mendizorrotza.
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Quique Setien
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