Mascherano: Barca not prepared for Guardiola exit

Barcelona’s Javier Mascherano says the club is not prepared for the departure of coach Pep Guardiola.

Reports in Spain suggest Guardiola, who has guided Barcelona to the last two Champions League trophies, could be on the verge of signing a new contract with the Catalan giants, despite rumours linking him with a Camp Nou exit.

And should those rumours prove correct, Mascherano says the club is not ready for the departure of the master coach.

“We’re not prepared for Guardiola to leave, because he has achieved not only silverware but something else very important, and that is that the club is very united and everyone backs him at the club,” Mascherano said.

“People respect him not only for what he’s won but how he’s won. Nobody should make the mistake of thinking that we only want him to be with us because he makes us win.”

The draw for the Champions League quarter-finals takes place on Friday and while Mascherano said he has no preference, he admitted rivals Real Madrid have to be considered one of the more dangerous opponents.

“It’s very difficult to have a favourite team to meet in the next round,” he said.

“It’s the best eight teams in Europe, so we’ll see who we get in the next round. Real Madrid are of course one of the favourites because they have a very strong team and they’re playing very consistently.”

“But on Friday we’ll definitely know for sure who we will meet in the next round, it’s all down to destiny.”