No football manager sees his side beaten 8-2 and expects to still be in his job for very long afterwards.
Least of all if it happens on such a big stage. Like the UEFA Champions League Semi-final.
But that is what Quique Setien had to endure from the sidelines in Lisbon on Friday. His hapless team were shredded to pieces by a rampant Bayern Munich on Friday.
Surely the axe will fall on him after only seven months on the job.
But that leads us immediately on to Next Barcelona Manager Odds.
Next Barcelona Manager Odds
Xavi Hernandez 6/4
Mauricio Pochettino 9/4
Marcelo Bielsa 8/1
Roberto Martinez 10/1
Laurent Blanc 10/1
Ronald Koeman 12/1
Nuno Espirito Santo 16/1
Marcelo Gallardo 16/1
20/1 bar
* (betting odds taken from William Hill at 00:29 GMT on Saturday, 14th August 2020)
Football Betting at William Hill
Fourth-choice not good enough for ageing Barca
There are reports that Quique Setien was only the fourth-choice for Barcelona when he was appointed manager in January this year, replacing Ernesto Valverde.
The former Real Betis boss couldn’t deliver the La Liga title to the Nou Camp and now the Champions League hopes have been washed away in a blink of an eye.
Barcelona are an ageing side at the moment, and they don’t look as if they have too much talent coming through the ranks to solve that.
Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Gerard Pique, Ivan Rakitic, Arturo Vidal and Sergio Busquets are a few of those key players still at the club who are well into their 30’s.
On Saturday in their match against Bayern Munich, Barcelona still had six players who were there when they last lifted Europe’s elite trophy six years ago.
It’s time for a shakeup at the Nou Camp.
Mauricio Pochettino 9/4 in Next Barcelona Manager Odds
Former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino is likely to be a target for the Spanish giants and he is currently at 9/4 in the market* (betting odds taken from William Hill at 00:29 GMT on Saturday, 14th August 2020).
First things first, he has been unemployed since parting company with Tottenham early last season.
What could help his case in getting one of the biggest jobs in football is that he is reportedly friends with Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu.
A rebuild to recovery
Barcelona have to start shedding some of their ageing, senior players. That is not going to be the easiest thing to pull off in this financial climate at all.
Neither is trying to rebuild, the club already having said that there was little financial viability in re-signing Neymar because of the way 2020 has gone.
Barcelona are not financially in a great shape allegedly, which leaves them in a situation of needing perhaps to blood and nurture some young talent.
That sounds just about in the wheelhouse for Mauricio Pochettino, who was always on a stringent budget at Tottenham and put trust in younger players.
Ronald Koeman the man?
The former popular Barcelona player is the current manager of the Netherlands and he is halfway through a contract there which would include the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Koeman led the Netherlands to runners up in the UEFA Nations League in 2019.
So he would be a familiar face back at the Nou Camp and the Dutchman is currently at 12/1 in Next Barcelona manager odds* (betting odds taken from William Hill at 00:29 GMT on Saturday, 14th August 2020).
Football Betting at William Hill
Xavi to accept?
Former midfielder Xavi Hernandez is at 6/4 FAV in Next Barcelona manager odds* (betting odds taken from William Hill at 00:29 GMT on Saturday, 14th August 2020).
He looked to be close to getting the job when Valverde was sacked according to the media.
But in 2019 he went into his first managerial job with Qatar’s Al Sadd.
The interesting thing is that he knows how the club currently works and he doesn’t seem overly keen to head there under the current institutional problems.
That seems to largely be over how the club is being run by president Josep Maria Bartomeu.
Some of the other notable names on the list include Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa, current Belgium boss Roberto Martinez and Wolves’ manager Nuno Espirito Santo.
