Xavi wants to coach Barcelona in the future, but insists he respects the club’s incumbent manager, Ronald Koeman.

Speaking in an interview with FIFA, the former Spain international admitted he would like to one day take charge of his boyhood team.

The Barca legend turned down the chance to replace former coach Ernesto Valverde in January 2020, and was rumored to be in line to replace Quique Setien last summer before he signed a one-year contract extension with Al Sadd. 

“Right now, I’m at Al Sadd and I’m doing well here,” the 41-year-old told FIFA.

“I’m at a big club in Asia, in Qatar. It’s the best team in Qatar.

“We’ll see what happens in the future.

“Everyone sees me as a Barcelona coach, and I really respect Barcelona and [Ronald] Koeman, the current head coach.

“I don’t want to hide the truth - of course I would like to be Barcelona’s head coach. I’ve said it many times.

“But I will always respect the presiding coach and the club. I wish them the best of course.

“I’ve been a Barcelona fan as long as I can remember. 

“There’s an upcoming presidential election, so let’s see which candidate wins in roughly a month’s time."