Xavi leaves, manager Enriques to stay at Barcelona

Madrid: Captain Xavi Hernandez may have announced he is leaving FC Barcelona at the end of the season but according to club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, coach Luis Enrique will not be following him out of the door.

The Barcelona coach has always avoided talking about his future and even refused to discuss it after his side won the La Liga title last weekend, reports Xinhua.

With Barcelona still competing for a treble with the Copa del Rey and Champions League finals still ahead of them, it has been a magnificent season after a tough start to the campaign and Bartomeu and the club fans want Enrique to remain.

Bartomeu, who himself has to stand for re-election as president at the end of the campaign, on Thursday expressed his confidence in the same coach being at the helm next season.

"I believe and know that he is staying," he commented. "He (Luis Enrique) has a contract for another year and I believe it's also obvious that the project he started a year ago is good for the club."

Nevertheless Bartomeu is not in favour of any new negotiations for the moment.

"I think it's best to concentrate on the games we have left. When the season finishes, we will talk about the future," he said.

"Between now and then we have elections; I'm not going to negotiate a renewal if I'm not re-elected," he explained, adding that this season's league triumph showed the club has "done things correctly".