Interview by
Javier Cáceres
Whenever there was a question in the past few years whether the coach at FC Barcelona had to be replaced, the name Francisco Javier García Pimienta came up reliably. Because: It is meat from the meat of Barça. From 1986 to 1998, the 47-year-old played in every team in Barcelona – from the U12 to the professional team. Later he headed every team from the youth division and also Barça B, the second team of the traditional Catalan club. The fact that President Joan Laporta decided in June to replace García Pimienta with former professional Sergi Barjuan as Barça B coach caused astonishment in large parts of the appendix. At the time, head coach Ronald Koeman was on the brink. The Dutchman held out until he was replaced at the end of October – not by García Pimienta but by club legend Xavi Hernández. On Wednesday, Barça will face FC Bayern in Munich – with a number of players who have gone through García Pimienta’s school.