Italy legend Fabio Cannavaro believes Barcelona won’t appoint Andrea Pirlo as their next coach: ‘They’ll call Xavi because he knows the club.’
Pirlo, a former Juventus midfielder and coach, has been linked with the Nou Camp job as Ronald Koeman’s future appears in doubt after the Catalans’ slow start to the season.
Pirlo is among the candidates to replace the Dutch coach along with Barcelona legends Frank Rijkaard and Xavi.
“Without Messi, everything is more difficult. The coach is fundamental. I read about Pirlo, but I think they will call Xavi. You need someone who knows the club’s values,” Cannavaro told AS.
In September, Cannavaro rescinded his contract with Guangzhou FC and now hopes to get his first job as a coach in Europe.
When asked about a possible appointment as Napoli or Italy coach, he replied: “They are part of my story and I would love to, but my priority is to train in Europe: I don’t close any doors.”
Cannavaro is the last Italian player to have won the Ballon d’Or.
He was named best player of the year in 2006 after Italy’s World Cup victory.
The 48-year-old played for Napoli, Parma, Inter, Juventus, Real Madrid and Al-Ahli during his playing career.
Hoy en @diarioas charlamos con @fabiocannavaro
: el #ItaEsp, su regreso a Europa ("Ahora quiero entrenar aquí"), las bromas con #Pepe y #Marcelo, #Ramos "Maldini", #LuisEnrique, el Balón de Oro…➡️ https://t.co/WuwgNvaij8 pic.twitter.com/mpVbNs0zOB
— Mirko Calemme (@mirkocalemme) October 6, 2021
Again with the Pirlo to Barcelona talk. The fit doesn’t seem right. I want Pirlo to be successful, but going to such a high profile team (when they are mired in financial turmoil) will only set his managerial experience backwards. Two to three seasons coaching a mid-table team serves him better, then he measure success by how he steered the team upwards rather than overseeing a high-powered team as a “cruise control” coach.
Barely recognize Fabio with hair…looks off…
Basta Posco.. while it depends, what mid level team did Pep coach or Zidane, they were involved in their clubs youth team ( level B) and assistants to first team before taking over coaching the jobs at Barca and Real.
Spot on @Sammy, though those two coaches caught major breaks early on that sustained them. Pirlo’s situation is a bit more capricious. I think he did what he had to do helming Juventus, and he definitely deserves another chance.