Xavi Pascual no longer head coach of FC Barcelona Lassa

Xavier Pascual Vives is no longer the head coach of the FC Barcelona Lassa basketball team following an announcement made by the club at a Tuesday press conference in the Palau Blaugrana. Pascual had been at the club for more than eight seasons and won a wealth of different honours in his time here.

19 titles with FC Barcelona

Since he was appointed manager on 14 February 2008, and a season later had become the youngest coach ever to win the ACB title. He’d go on to win the Spanish championship three more times, in 2011, 2012 and 2014.

He also won three editions of the Copa del Rey (2010, 2011 and 2013), four ACB Super Cups (2009/10, 2010/11, 2011/12 and 2015/16) and seven Catalan Leagues (2009/10, 2010/11, 2011/12, 2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16).

But his most important achievement was winning the club’s second Euroleague crown in Paris in 2010, where he was also named coach of the tournament.

A new model

FC Barcelona's director of professional sports Albert Soler, and the director in charge of the basketball section Joan Bladé, spoke on Tuesday about the decision.

“This decision was not sparked by anything in particular, it’s something we’ve been talking about for some time” said Soler. “We have always wanted to the team to win as much as possible, and our main targets are the Euroleague, ACB and Copa del Rey. This has not happened for two years, but it’s not a change of coach that we need, but a change of model.”

“The club must continue with its ways of understanding basketball” he continued. “”And that way shall be decided with the people that will be taking that responsibility when we so decide. The future coach will be able to put together his own team.”

He also thanked Xavi Pascual and the manager of the section, Joan Creus, who also left his post recently, for “the good work that they did together, always with the club’s best interests and not personal ones at heart.”

Joan Bladé also praised Pascual for what he has achieved at the club. “It was an honour to have him as coach” he said. “I thank him for the respect he has shown to everyone, the institution, the players, the coaching staff, the assistants. The medical services, the directors and everyone else.”