‘Xavi wants Busquets to stay’, reveals Laporta

Karan Tejwani

• 24 Dec 2022 12:55 GMT
• 3 min read

Barcelona President Joan Laporta has spoken about Sergio Busquets’ future at the club amid rumours of a departure at the end of the current season.

Busquets is in the final months of his deal with the Blaugrana and there is plenty of speculation surrounding his future at the Camp Nou.

He has been linked with a move to Major League Soccer, with Inter Miami being the most likely destination, however, nothing concrete is known yet.

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Now, the Barcelona President has been speaking about Busquets’ future and suggests that manager Xavi wants to keep him at the club.

Barcelona want Busquets stay

“We want him to stay. Xavi told me he wants him until the end of the season; he is counting on him,” Laporta said to the club’s in-house channels recently.

“We will see what Busquets decides, either now or in the summer, on his future. It’s been commented that he has offers from MLS now, but I hope he stays until the end of the season.

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“Whatever decision he takes will be a well-considered one,” Laporta concluded, suggesting Barcelona are still open to renewing his deal at the club.

Regardless of his future at the club, Barcelona are planning for a future without him in case he does leave, with many options considered as his successor in the future.

Frenkie de Jong has played in that position plenty of times in the past, suggesting he might take over, but other players like Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi are also being considered.

For Busquets, if he does leave, he will be putting an end to an illustrious career at Barcelona, having been a mainstay in the team since 2008 and holding down the pivot position since.

He has already confirmed his retirement from international duty following Spain’s underwhelming World Cup campaign in Qatar this month.