Before Xavi Hernandez took the role as Barcelona manager, it was abundantly clear that he would have quite the task on his hands to restore the Catalans back to their rightful place at the top table of European football.
Nothing that has happened since he took over has changed that.
In fact, one could argue that the situation has actually got worse for the club’s former midfielder, given injury concerns and the fact that for the first time in 20 years, Barca have exited the Champions League at the group stage.
That might actually prove to be a blessing in disguise in the long term, though it could have a marked effect on their business over the next couple of transfer windows.
According to El Nacional, 17-year-old sensation, Gavi, could be ready to join Liverpool, with the Reds set to pay his absurdly low €50m buyout clause.
As one of the few bright spots to emerge from Barcelona in the last two seasons of utter crisis, should Gavi decide to move to the English top-flight, it would almost certainly doom Xavi’s project to failure.
It would represent a belief that Xavi doesn’t have what it takes, and that in itself could lead to more departures in due course.