Ronald Koeman Makes Stunning Statement About Barcelona Ahead of Tie Against Atletico

Ronald Koeman Makes Stunning Statement About Barcelona Ahead of Tie Against Atletico

Babajide Orevba, Ibitoye Shittu
updated at April 12, 2023 at 7:42 PM
  • Koeman held a tense press conference on Friday, October 1 where he spoke on, among other things, his future
  • The Dutchman said he was tired of defending himself but admitted rumours of his impending sacking had some truth
  • Barcelona are sixth in La Liga and have lost their opening two Champions League group games

Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman has sensationally claimed he is “fed up” with having to constantly defend himself.

Ronald Koeman
Ronald Koeman is on the verge of being sacked by Barcleona, according to reports. Photo by Eric Verhoeven.
Source: Getty Images

Numerous reports from Spain claim the Dutchman is on the verge of a sacking after Barcelona lost their opening two Champions League group games.

The Catalan club is also struggling in La Liga, as they are five points behind leaders Real Madrid.

During a press conference ahead of the crunch match against Atletico Madrid, Koeman opened up in brutally honest fashion about his current situation at the Nou Camp.

"Nobody has said anything to me," he said as quoted by BBC.

On whether he had spoken to Barcelona president Joan Laoprta, Koeman added:

"The president [Joan Laporta] was here but I haven't seen him because we were preparing for tomorrow's game.”
"I am still here, but I have eyes and ears and a lot of things filter through.
"I am fed up of having to defend myself. It makes no sense. Today is not the time, but one day I would like to talk all about what I think of all this."

Koeman was further pressed to answer the question on his relationship with Laporta but he played it down by simply saying “I’m still here”.

The 58-year-old’s latest comments come as Barcelona continue to weigh options on his potential replacement.

Daily Mail reports that Barcelona directors stayed up until 4 am deciding on whether to sack Koeman after returning to Spain from the Benfica nightmare.

Barca will have the international break to install a new coach, but their options are rather limited with only a few potential high profile names like Xavi and Roberto Martinez being in line to replace Koeman.

Former Juventus boss Andre Pirlo is also another option, but Barcelona chiefs are concerned about the Italian’s lack of experience.

Meanwhile, as far as rumours are concerned, Jurgen Klopp has emerged as a shock target for the Barcelona job.

According to Spanish outlet El Nacional, Barca president Laporta sees the German as a dream candidate, despite the fact that Klopp is contracted to Liverpool until 2024.

Authors
Babajide Orevba photo
Babajide Orevba
Babajide Orevba is a CAF accredited Nigerian journalist and HOD of the Local Desk with over 10 years of experience in media landscape.He studied NCE Political Science/Social Studies, AOCOED.
Ibitoye Shittu photo
Ibitoye Shittu
Editor- Local Desk
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