Sevilla 1-2 Barcelona: Bittersweet farewell for Xavi as Barca end season with a win

Barcelona ended the season with a 2-1 victory at Sevilla in LaLiga on Sunday, making departing coach Xavi’s farewell bittersweet after a trophy-less season.

La Blaugrana came out all guns blazing from the start and took the lead in the 15th minute through Robert Lewandowski who scored from close range after latching onto Joao Cancelo’s cross.

Sevilla levelled with Youssef En-Nesyri’s strike in the 31st minute and went close again but failed to beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen before Barca got the winner on the hour through Fermin Lopez.

Barca were already guaranteed second place going into Xavi’s final game. The Spaniard was sacked on Friday, after a disappointing campaign in which they lost the Spanish Supercopa final to Real Madrid and were knocked out of the Champions League by Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-final.

FULL TIME!!! #SevillaBarça pic.twitter.com/XUzN5UwOpL

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) May 26, 2024

Data Debrief: A legend departs

Xavi never lost any of his six games as a manager against Sevilla in LaLiga (W5 D1), making them just the third opponent that he faced six times without defeat (also W5 D1 against Real Mallorca and Osasuna).

Fermin got the all-important goal to ensure Xavi’s tenure ended on a high note. He has scored seven goals in LaLiga in 2024, a record surpassed by only one other Spanish player in Europe’s top five leagues this year: Iago Aspas (eight).