Barca sacks sporting director Eric Abidal after trophyless season

Barcelona has sacked sporting director Eric Abidal a day after parting ways with head coach Quique Setien.

Eric Abidal has took up the role of sporting director at Barcelona for the 2019-20 season after serving an year in a technical role.

Barcelona has sacked sporting director Eric Abidal on Tuesday, a day after dispensing with head coach Quique Setien. Abidal's departure is the second major exit at the Catalan club, which is in response to the 8-2 Champions League quarterfinal loss to Bayern Munich, which meant the club had completed a season without winning a single trophy.

"FC Barcelona and Éric Abidal have reached an agreement for the ending of the contract that united the two parties," an official statement said.

 

The Frenchman was also the target of criticism from Lionel Messi earlier this year, who accused his former team mate of blaming the squad for Ernesto Valverde getting sacked as coach last January.

Abidal, a former Barca defender and two-times Champions League winner with the club, had been in in a technical role since 2018 and took on the job of sporting director at the start of the 2019-2020 season.