“Palau is my sanctuary”
It has been 60 days since Xavi Pascual officially left Barça, after the coach paid his release clause before subsequently joining Dubai Basketball.
After plenty of discussion and speculation in the first few days, silence eventually settled around both the Blaugrana organization and the coach from Gavà. Pascual has now broken that silence, while maintaining a conciliatory tone toward the club.
Speaking to El Suplement on Catalunya Ràdio, Pascual avoided any controversy with the club he considers the organization of his life.
“Palau is my sanctuary, it is my place. I will never be as happy as I was at Palau. That is something very difficult to change. It is the club of my life, these are the colors of my life”.
“It was not about money”
Pascual’s departure from Barça raised several questions, particularly regarding the financial aspect of his decision.
The coach denied that money was a determining factor.
“I would no longer have come here because I had other opportunities with much more money. And I probably would not have signed where I signed either, because I had things with much more money”.
The former Barça coach also made it clear that he has never blamed the club for his departure.
“I have never pointed to the club as being guilty. The club and Xavi Pascual were together for 10 years. Then we stopped being together for almost another 10 years. Both sides evolved in different directions”.
His relationship with Laporta remains intact
Pascual also addressed his relationship with Barça president Joan Laporta, insisting that it has not changed.
“My relationship with president Joan Laporta remains intact and we have a very good relationship. I explained to him how I felt and he respected me from the very first moment, as he always has. We have always had a very good relationship, nothing has changed and nothing will change”.
“A coach must feel he is in the right place”
Maintaining his conciliatory tone, Pascual reiterated a point he had already made when announcing his departure: a coach must feel fully convinced that he is in the right place.
“A coach must feel that he is in the right place at the right time. He must lead with honesty, knowledge and the conviction that he can guide the team to success”.
For Pascual, this is why coaches sometimes have to turn down certain opportunities.
“Many times you have to say no to certain places because the club’s objective does not exactly match the objective you believe you can achieve. It is something very complicated that you learn over the years”.
“The past did not affect me”
Pascual also addressed whether the success of his first spell at Barça increased the expectations surrounding his return.
“The past did not affect me”.
Reflecting on the recently completed season, the current Dubai coach highlighted the difficult circumstances his team faced.
“The team was what it was. We could not change it. In the end, we reached the Liga final, which was a very complicated situation considering how the season had developed. Without any reinforcements and with many injury problems”.
“I spoke with Pep Guardiola: second spells are complicated”
At the end of the interview, Pascual revealed that he also spoke with Pep Guardiola about his second spell at Barça.
“I spoke with Pep Guardiola about how second spells are complicated. And at Barça, they are too”.
Despite the difficulties surrounding his return, Pascual insisted that he has no regrets.
“Despite having said no several times, in the end I felt that the time was right, and I don’t regret it. I think I helped bring a little bit of stability to the club. As a Barcelona fan, I am happy with what I contributed at that time”.
