Barcelona president Sandro Rosell feels sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta made the right decision to promote Tito Vilanova to head coach.
Vilanova replaced Pep Guardiola at the end of the 2011/12 campaign following the latter s decision to take a break from the game for a year, and Barca are more than satisfied with his former assistant s work so far this season, as they lead La Liga by 11 points.
Tito has talent, he understands what Barcelona mean, what La Masia is and what being Catalan means, Rosell told reporters.
It was a brilliant decision by Zubizarreta to give him the job.
Rosell then went on to say that he does not expect Xavi Hernandez to retire any time soon after the veteran midfielder put pen to paper on a new contract on Monday.
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Xavi hopes to stay at Barcelona for many years but insists his main focus is on winning trophies, rather than extending his contract at Camp Nou.
The Blaugrana are on track for a treble this season. Nine points clear at the LaLiga summit, Xavi has already secured Supercopa de Espana glory, while Barca are also 1-0 to the good in their two-legged Copa del Rey semi-final tie with Real Madrid.
The former midfielder has one year remaining on his existing contract, although club president Joan Laporta revealed negotiations over a new deal were ongoing.
Xavi is hopeful those talks are successful and he can enjoy a lengthy reign at Barca, similar to that of Alex Ferguson, who won 13 Premier League titles and two Champions Leagues during his 27-year tenure with Mancheste…
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag insisted he is not frustrated at all by the club s transfer window, despite encountering difficulties in the market.
United have drafted in Christian Eriksen, Lisandro Martinez and Tyrell Malacia ahead of the 2022-23 campaign but have not been able to land other targets – including Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong.
That has led to some reports that the club are concerned about the limited number of new arrivals ahead of the Premier League season, which United begin at Old Trafford against Brighton and Hove Albion on Sunday.
Ten Hag has denied that he feels that way, however, adding that he is really happy with the three additions the club has made.
I m not frustrated at all. First of all, we have a squad and we h…
Despite being out on loan at Sporting Lisbon for the season, Nani harbours hopes of a return to Premier League side Manchester United.
Nani feels he has a long-term future at Manchester United, despite spending the season on loan at Sporting Lisbon.
The winger was sent back to his homeland as part of the deal that brought Marcos Rojo to Old Trafford last August.
A return to Sporting – where the Portugal international started out – appeared to spell the end of Nani s United career, even though he only signed a new five-year deal with the Premier League club in September 2013.
But the winger is adamant that he can force his way back into the United first team under Louis van Gaal.
When quizzed on whether he felt aggrieved with Van Gaal f…
Paddy McNair believes Jose Mourinho is the right man to bring success back to Manchester United.
Mourinho is widely expected to be named United s new manager this week following the sacking of Louis van Gaal on Monday.
And young defender McNair, who is away with Northern Ireland as they prepare for Euro 2016, is thrilled by the prospect of working with the former Chelsea boss.
He s a world-class manager. He s won lots of trophies, Champions Leagues and he s worked with the best players in the world, the 21-year-old told Sky Sports News.
I ll be looking to impress, hopefully when I play in France he ll be watching.
He wins trophies. Man United should be winning trophies every year so it s a good fit.
Despite his excitement over Mourinh…
Former Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas is set to be unveiled as Tottenham s new head coach on Monday.
The Portuguese will reportedly sign a three-year deal to succeed Harry Redknapp, with the final paperwork to be completed over the weekend.
Villas-Boas was initially Tottenham s second choice behind France coach Laurent Blanc, but ex Porto man impressed Spurs chairman Daniel Levy during a series of meetings throughout June.
The 34-year-old is already actively involved in Tottenham s transfer plans and has approved proposed moves for Iceland international Gylfi Sigurdsson and Ajax defender Jan Vertonghen.
The signing of Sigurdsson will be confirmed as early as Monday after he passed a medical and agreed personal terms with the north London club.
Spain cruised to a 3-0 win over Estonia to maintain their 100 percent record after three matches in the World Cup qualifying Group 5.
Spain coach Vicente del Bosque was finally able to field his two first-choice strikers, David Villa and Fernando Torres, after the Liverpool player returned from injury.
The pair kept Estonian keeper Pavel Londak kept busy throughout much of the match but it was Real Betis defender Juanito who scored first, connecting with a free kick from Barcelona s Xavi Hernandez in the 34th minute.
Valencia striker Villa scored from the penalty spot to make it 2-0 four minutes later after Estonian defender Alo Barengrubhe fouled Torres.
Villa, the top scorer at Euro 2008, has scored in each of Spain s three World Cup qualifying mat…
Frank Lampard has called on Chelsea s new recruits to wake up and adjust to the demands of the Premier League following back-to-back losses.
The Blues temporarily moved top of the table with a 3-1 win over Leeds United on December 5 but have since lost away to Everton and Wolves.
Olivier Giroud had given Lampard s men the lead in Tuesday s clash at Molineux, only for Daniel Podence to equalise and before Pedro Neto rifled in a 95th-minute winner.
Chelsea have spent over £200million on new players this year and five of those Edouard Mendy, Thiago Silva, Ben Chilwell, Kai Havertz and Timo Werner started the Wolves defeat.
On the back of successive league losses for the first time in a year, Lampard urged his big-money captures to quickly learn from the…
Liverpool midfielder Emre Can says all discussions regarding his future have been put on hold until the end of the 2017-18 season.
The Germany international has been strongly linked with a move to Juventus when his Liverpool contract expires in June, having failed to agree a new deal at Anfield.
Juve were expected to wrap up a move for the 24-year-old quickly once Can entered the final six months of his existing agreement.
However, an announcement has yet to be made, with Can insisting nothing has been settled and all talks have been put on hold with Liverpool chasing second place in the Premier League and into the last eight of the Champions League.
Of course, I have to think about my footballing future, he said. I haven t signed for any other club, I m…
PSV Eindhoven manager Dick Advocaat believes that Kevin Strootman must leave the Philips Stadion this summer in order to progress his career, .
Strootman, 23, is highly regarded at the Philips Stadion after back-to-back sensational seasons in the Dutch Eredivisie.
The 23-year-old Holland international is reportedly attracting interest from a number of Europe s top clubs, including the likes of AC Milan, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.
Strootman, who made his international debut against Austria on 9 February 2011, has earned 18 caps for Holland and is currently the reserve captain for the Oranje.
For PSV it would be good if he stays, but for Strootman himself it s better to leave, Advocaat told De Telegraaf.