Messi potentially stepping into a coaching role at Barcelona is a tantalizing prospect that has sparked intense speculation among fans and pundits alike.

The prospect of Lionel Messi becoming Barcelona coach could happen in the context of Xavi Hernandez announcing that he will leave when the 2023/24 season ends.

On talkSPORT, former Liverpool and England player Danny Murphy shared his opinion: “If I were Barca’s board of directors, I would choose Messi to replace Xavi as head coach. The fans definitely support this decision.”

“Everything he touched, every club he went to, turned to gold, full of trophies. Messi possesses talents that ordinary people cannot touch. I think that’s still true if Messi is the coach,” Murphy added.

On January 28, coach Xavi announced that he would leave Barca after the 2023/24 season ends. The 44-year-old strategist said that sitting in the hot seat of the Catalan giant was too stressful, causing him to have a mental breakdown after more than 2 years of work.

Mikel Arteta and Thomas Tuchel have been linked with the Barca job next season, but both have denied the reports. Meanwhile, it is unclear whether Messi, who currently plays for Inter Miami, would be interested in a job at the Spanish club.

Messi replacing Xavi as Barca head coach will cause many surprises. In 2022, the Argentine legend shared with Star+ that he has no plans to do coaching after retiring. Instead, he is more interested in “behind the scenes” roles such as sports director.