Barcelona coach says new manager knows the team well
\nNAPLES
\nBarcelona coach Xavi Hernandez says preparing for Wednesday\u2019s Champions League last 16 tie against Napoli has proved tricky with the Italians now under new management.
\nStruggling Napoli sacked Walter Mazzarri and brought in Slovakia coach Francesco Calzona on Monday, 48 hours before they host Barcelona. \u201cNapoli changed their coach in a surprising way, they have their reasons, but it\u2019s not an easy match to prepare for, as we don\u2019t know what to expect,\u201d Xavi told the eve-of-match press conference on Tuesday. He added: \u201cThe new manager knows the team well. I have no idea what tactical system he\u2019s going to use.
\n\u201cWhat\u2019s important is to focus on our style of play and what we want to do, on our ambitions which are to reach the quarter-finals.
\n\u201cWhat is certain is that we will have to defend well up against their very strong attacking trio.
\n\u201c(Victor) Osimhen, (Khvicha) Kvaratskhelia and (Matteo) Politano can turn a game.\u201d
\nNapoli, last season\u2019s Serie A champions under Luciano Spalletti who is now with the Italian national team, are once again trying to start afresh after sacking their second manager of a disastrous season\u2013Spalletti\u2019s replacement Rudi Garcia was axed in November.
\nDespite the state of flux at Napoli, Xavi denied his side were favourites going into the tie. \u201cIt\u2019s 50-50, we\u2019ll see tomorrow who is favourite at the end of the game,\u201d added Xavi who has announced he is stepping down as Barca boss at the end of the season.
\n\u201cIt doesn\u2019t change anything for me nor for my team. I\u2019m motivated, and want to pass that motivation onto the team.
\n\u201cWhen you are a player or manager at Barcelona the pressure is always the same and it\u2019s very strong.\u201d Barcelona, five time title-holders, failed to make it out of the group stage of the Champions League in the past two seasons, and were knocked out by Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 in 2021.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Barcelona coach says new manager knows the team well NAPLES Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez says preparing for Wednesday\u2019s Champions League last 16 tie against Napoli has proved tricky with the Italians now under new management. Struggling Napoli sacked Walter Mazzarri and brought in Slovakia coach Francesco Calzona on Monday, 48 hours before they host Barcelona. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":388648,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-388633","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n