Barcelona confirm former Bayern Munich boss Hansi Flick as new head coach following Xavi Hernandez departure

Barcelona have confirmed the appointment of Hansi Flick as the club's new manager, replacing Xavi Hernandez at the helm.

Xavi, a former Barca captain, was dismissed as boss at the end of the 2023/24 season after he had initially announced a U-turn on his decision to leave the club in the summer.

The Catalans finished second in La Liga, 10 points adrift of champions Real Madrid, and were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League in the quarter-finals against Paris Saint-Germain.

The La Liga club confirmed Flick's appointment on a two-year contract ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.

An extract from the official statement read: "FC Barcelona and Hansi Flick have reached an agreement for the German to be the coach of the men's first team until June 30, 2026.

"The new coach signed a contract at the club's offices in an event with the president of FC Barcelona, ​​Joan Laporta; the first vice-president in charge of the sports area, Rafa Yuste; and the club's sports director, Anderson Luís de Souza, Deco."

In a video released by Barcelona on X, Flick said: "First of all, I would like to say thank you to everyone (involved). It's a big honour and also a dream for me to sign my contract here in Barcelona, to work for this amazing club, and I'm happy to start.

"The club is unbelievable. The hours I'm here in Barcelona, it's amazing because everyone here in the club loves this club and tries to give their best so they have success.

"The philosophy they have is similar to mine - ball possession and really attacking football, these are the things I love.

"I won some titles with Bayern Munich and my hunger is really big for titles. I would like to stay on this path with Barcelona and I think we can achieve a lot together."

The 59-year-old has managed the German national team, Bayern Munich and TSG Hoffenheim in a coaching career that has spanned 28 years.

Flick also held the position of sporting director at the German Football Association from 2014 to 2017.

He most recently managed Germany after replacing Joachim Low following UEFA Euro 2020 [in 2021] which saw Germany knocked out by hosts England in the last 16.

Under Flick's stewardship, Germany crashed out of the 2022 Qatar World Cup group stages for a second consecutive campaign.

He was dismissed from his role just under a year later following a 4-1 defeat to Japan, a third defeat in a row. Flick guided the nation to just one win in six following their dismal World Cup campaign.

Before the national team job, Flick rejoined Bayern in 2019 and took charge of the club he played for between 1985 and 1990.

He managed Bayern for two years until 2021 and during his time at the Allianz Arena, won back-to-back Bundesliga titles and led the club to a sixth and most recent Champions League title.

Flick also delivered the DFB-Pokal, DFL-Supercup, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup during his glittering time in Munich.

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