MADRID (AP) — Xavi Hernandez He ended his time as Barcelona coach with a 2-1 victory over Sevilla, in the last round of the Spanish championship, on Sunday.
Robert Lewandowski and Fermin López scored for Barcelona, who announced Friday that they were separating with the former midfielder having one year left on his contract.
“We didn’t want this to end, but these are decisions made by the club,” said Xavi. “We didn’t win titles, but we were on the right path. But football is like that, it’s the managers who decide. The response from the players was wonderful.”
Barcelona players said goodbye to Xavi after the match.
“We will always wish Xavi the best,” said goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen. “He has been a friend for many years and it is not easy to let him go… He deserves the best.”
Barcelona had already clinched second place and a place in the lucrative Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia next season. It ended with four consecutive victories.
Youssef En-Nesyri scored for Sevilla, who finished in 14th place after four consecutive defeats.
En-Nesyri’s goal came in the 31st minute, after Lewandowski had put Barcelona ahead in the 15th minute. López scored the winning goal for the Catalan club in the 59th minute.
Xavi’s departure came a month after he had went back on a previous decision he did it in January leave the club this summer. In April, he said he changed his mind because the team was playing better and he believed it could recover from a trophyless season.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta publicly celebrated Xavi’s commitment to stay at that time. But last week the president was reportedly unhappy when the head coach spoke openly about how the club’s precarious finances would prevent it from competing with rivals Real Madrid.
“Those who made the decision need to explain it,” said Xavi, 44, who plans to take a break from coaching.
There was little to be decided in the final round of the league on Sunday. Champions Madrid, focused on the upcoming Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley, drew 0-0 with Real Betis on Saturday.
Barcelona, Girona and Atlético Madrid were the other three teams that qualified for the Champions League next season, while Basque Country rivals Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad will play in the Europa League. Betis won a place in the Conference League.
The three relegated clubs were Cádiz, Almería and Granada.
In other results on Sunday, Mallorca won 2-1 at Getafe, Celta Vigo drew 2-2 at Valencia and Alavés drew 1-1 at Las Palmas.
Girona striker Artem Dovbyk finished as the league’s top scorer this season with 24 goals, one more than Villarreal’s Alexander Sorloth. Real Madrid’s Lewandowski and Jude Bellingham were third with 19 goals.
Madrid finished with the best attack with 87 goals scored, and the best defense with 26 goals conceded.
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