FC Barcelona president Joan Laporta has responded to talk about the club sacking Xavi Hernandez before the end of the season.
The club legend announced he will leave the club when the campaign concludes following the side's 5-3 loss to Villarreal last weekend.
Barcelona currently sit ten points behind league leaders Real Madrid in fourth place, while the UEFA Champpions League is the only other trophy the team can win this campaign.
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Despite the mixed results in recent weeks, Laporta insists Xavi won't be sacked before the campaign concludes in May.
"I thought Xavi's decision was just in heat of the defeat, but I listened to him and realised that he had given it a lot of thought," Laporta said in an interview with RAC 1.
"He spoke with a lot of conviction. He said he would step down at the end of the season and give up the remaining year on his contract. I told him if we had to fight for him to stay on, we would.
"I only accepted the proposal because it's him. I never thought of firing him. I want him to stay until the end of the season. I'm not going to fire him whatever happens. He doesn't deserve that. He deserves our backing.
"We're going to fight in LaLiga and the Champions League. We have a competitive squad that can beat anyone. It's a squad to be doing better than it is, but there are other circumstances to consider, such as the injuries we have had."
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