The loss to Athletic Club last night is raising a lot of questions about Xavi at FC Barcelona. Such a reaction to the loss is expected as Copa del Rey was one of the trophies that the Catalans were looking to win this year. One of Xavi’s decisions in this game which is raising some eyebrows is the substitution of Marc Guiu.
The Barcelona head-coach decided to bring on the La Masia youngster for the final few minutes of the match instead of Vitor Roque, even though the Brazilian was brought to the club this winter with the expectations of him making a significant contribution in the second-half of the season.
When Xavi decided to bring on Guiu, the Basques were already leading on the scoreboard 3-2 in extra time. At that time, Vitor Roque was also warming up with Fermin Lopez, but Xavi decided to send on the other striker when his side needed at least a goal to take the match to penalties.
Thus, there is a feeling that instead of competing with Lewandowski, Roque will be competing with Guiu for the time being. However, this competition is not going to create any feelings of animosity between the two players.
As SPORT has noted, this is clear from a picture shared by the Brazilian on his social media, where he is going through the recovery session with Guiu. The picture was accompanied by a message that went as: “Let’s go brother”.
The message shared by Roque shows that the two players have a good relationship, and also that Roque did not mind it too much that Xavi for Guiu instead of him in such an important match. This camaraderie is also important for the club, as these two youngsters are expected to remain a part of the club’s attacking line for the long-term.
