In Focus: Xav Barca taken a step forwards under their new boss?

After a bright start in life under Xavi, Barcelona are on the brink of losing four successive home games for the first time ever.

The club legend was hailed as a breath of fresh air following a disastrous spell under Ronald Koeman.

But interestingly, Xavi's 54.5% win ratio with 18 victories from 33 games is just short of his predecessor's 58.2%.

Koeman, who is set to take over as Netherlands manager in 2023, recently hit out at his dismissal, saying: "The situation of Barcelona, of the team and of the club, is the same as when I was there.

"That means that changing the coach doesn’t always mean being able to improve. The situation of the club hurts me, it hurts me. But from January 1 I will be the coach of the Netherlands. 

"I just ask for maximum support for Xavi. He is a good coach and a legend of the club. It isn’t his fault that Barcelona are in this situation. 

"The only thing I ask is support for Xavi. I didn’t have the full support of the president but I hope he’s learned and supports Xavi. 

"When I left, [Real] Madrid were eight points ahead and now the difference is almost double that."

LiveScore take a look at Xavi's short-lived reign to see if Koeman is right about the club going backwards or if there is hope despite their recent struggles.

Bright start

Barcelona went 15 games unbeaten in all competitions before Eintracht Frankfurt shocked the Camp Nou and sent the Catalans crashing out of the Europa League.

Xavi had to be given the benefit of the doubt for their Champions League exit given he took charge of the club in 10th position and was yet to properly implement his system.

Barca's most notable victory under their new boss came in El Clasico with a stunning 4-0 thrashing of Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.

January signings Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Ferran Torres both got on the scoresheet that day to leave fans dreaming of a return to the glory days.

Cause for concern

However, Barcelona have now lost three times in a row in front of their own fans for only the second time ever and defeat against Mallorca this evening would see Xavi make the wrong kind of history.

Yet despite Koeman's comments, progress does appear to have been made with the Catalan giants climbing to second in the league.

Seeing rivals Real cruise to the title will not delight the locals but victory over Mallorca should stop the rot and put Barca on course to reach the Champions League.

It has not been all bad in recent weeks, either. Xavi has won five in a row on the road in LaLiga and has not tasted defeat on the road in the competition since January.

It is in cup games where they have struggled with their Super Cup, Copa del Rey and Europa League campaigns coming to a premature end after crashing out in the group stage of Europe's premier competition.

The future under Xavi

Xavi's main issue going forward may not arise on the field, with the club still struggling to keep control of their finances.

Barcelona have a reported gross debt of £1.2bn, which led to Lionel Messi’s exit and will have a great effect on their future transfer policy.

Barca chiefs managed to rework the budget to bring in Aubameyang, Torres and Adama Traore earlier this year but are struggling to keep hold of talents like Liverpool target Gavi and Ousmane Dembele, who is out of contract in the summer.

Aubemayang and Torres hit the ground running, with the Gabonese striker netting nine times in 12 games so far and the Spaniard managing eight goal contributions in his first 13 appearances.

If Xavi really is to restore the good old days when Messi and Co dominated European football, recruitment must be successful and with the jury still out on Traore in his second spell at the club, he may not have hit on every bit of business so far.

Xavi will demand a victory against Mallorca, who have lost each of their last eight away from home, to ensure their bad run does not end up in the history books.

A top-four finish is all that Xavi's Barcelona can take from their underwhelming season, with a defining summer transfer window ahead.