After Xavi had announced a planned end-of-season departure, he was talked out of the decision by the board. However, after results nosedived, Barca then chose to sack the Blaugrana legend.
Xavi told Sport: "Xavi's departure was not easy because he had won a league, he had come into the club at a difficult time and accepted the challenge, but last season was tough in every sense and that's why we decided that the best thing was to give him a replacement on the bench.
"I don't regret anything because I always go straight to the point, I always say the things I believe and what I think at that moment. Xavi will always be a friend, an important person for me. He has been a teammate and he is a very important person in the history of the club, one of the most important players in the history of Barça. We have a lot of affection for him, but football is football. Sometimes things don't work out the way you think and you have to change.
"And we can't forget that the first one to take the step of leaving was Xavi and then he ended up changing his mind and that whole drama that we had to live through took place. But I don't regret anything, among other things because it wasn't my decision, it wasn't me who decided it, the decision ended up being made because of a series of things that happened and because of which we reached the conclusion. that a change was best."