Koeman likely to replace Setien at Barcelona

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Bengaluru, August 17: Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu has reportedly told Spanish media that head coach Quique Setien has been sacked with Ronald Koeman having emerged as the front-runner to replace him.

After being dethroned as La Liga champions by arch-rivals Real Madrid, Setien was struggling to hold on to his job.

The humiliating loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinal made Setien's job even more vulnerable and there are reports following the Lisbon loss even talisman player Lionel Messi does not want to continue at Camp Nou and is seeking a move either to England or Italy.

La Liga giants Barcelona conceded a whopping eight goals in a game for the first time since 1946, with Setien - who had replaced Ernesto Valverde just in January - accepting his future was out of his hands at Camp Nou.

With Barcelona set to officially announce the 61-year-old's departure Bartomeu told COPE's Tiempo de Juego, "Setien is out".

The rumour mill is strong that the Netherlands boss Koeman, who had earlier had been linked to Barcelona after Valverde was sacked, will be handed over the top job.

Koeman previously revealed his Netherlands contract contains a clause that allows him to depart for Camp Nou following Euro 2020, though the European Championship has been pushed back 12 months due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

In June, Koeman - who won four La Liga titles and the European Cup during his time at Camp Nou - had told Catalunya Radio: "Everyone knows it's my dream to coach Barca".

Former Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has also emerged as a possible option, along with club great Xavi Hernandez (who recently renewed his contract with Qatar Stars League champions Al Sadd) and ex-Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri.

Even before the Champions League debacle, Barcelona had announced that Setien will not continue in 2020-21