The image is repeated match after match. Xavi slow dancing with the fourth referee, talking close to his ear. This pattern is followed or preceded, or both, by gesticulations, protests and scuffles. He is the daily bread of the Barcelona technical area, always on the verge of a nervous breakdown, always with elevated pulses. Not a second of calm. Not in Montjuïc, not at home. Neither losing nor winning. This was the case when the Barcelona coach was sent off by Sánchez Martínez in a tres ino res at the Metropolitano. In the 39th minute he showed him the yellow card. At 42 he sent him to the stands without hesitation, much to the chagrin of the coach.
Displeasure that turned into joy from the stands, where the manager saw the magnificent gift from his players. They made a sensational triumph in a real fort. Where no one had won, his Barça managed it with solvency. He completed his best week of the season, coming off the back of beating Napoli in Europe. “We played an ideal game. We knew how to find the spaces and be effective. We found the free man. An almost perfect match within our philosophy”, analyzed Xavi.
Undoubtedly, the victory was a relief for the coach, always as in a fight with the world. With the referees, for sure. They have been fighting for months and there is no way that the waters will go down calmly.
The failure of the Blaugrana coach began with a quarrel with Gündogan that was not sanctioned with a card (it was very clear). Xavi turned on the referee, but he was not cautioned. Yes, he would be booked when he called for a card for a challenge from behind on Lewandowski (he didn’t seem to deserve it), and in the next protest, for an offside that was flagged late, he already had to leave the match It was a little while ago that Barça had made it 0-1.
It is his second sending-off of the season after the one he suffered on the opening day at Getafe, a night in which he launched a resounding tirade against LaLiga and the referees. In fact, he has already been sent off as many times as a coach (132 games) than in his career as a footballer (767 games). In addition, as a technician he has seen 24 yellow cards. Constant bleeding. He promised to control himself and said he would not talk about the referees anymore. Despite the fact that, on this matter, a few weeks ago he stated: “You won’t tell me that I’m not involved, with 4 yellow cards, one in the Cup and one expulsion in Getafe. Sometimes I make mistakes, I’m human.”
For the red card at the Coliseum he received a two-match ban and against Mallorca at the beginning of the month he also went to the stands due to accumulation of warnings. Now at least the commitment against Las Palmas will be lost.
Yesterday, after the game, Xavi didn’t want to draw a lot of blood, even though everything was understood. “I guess it’s because of the gestures, because I said absolutely nothing, I always try to be respectful. I am passionate and defend the interests of the team. For me the expulsion is unfair, but you have to accept it. Let’s see what the minutes say. The important thing is the team”, said the coach. What the referee put in the minutes is the following: “Making technical observations at the top of your lungs with gestures of disregard and after having been warned”.
After adding the fifth victory in five games against Simeone, Xavi promised that “I will collect the players more than ever. We will fight for everything. It’s a time to dream.”
