Jorge Sampaoli Favorite to Take Over Barcelona Job - But It’s Far From Certain

Since Luis Enrique is leaving, speculation will be rampant as to who will take over as FC Barcelona’s new coach.

Without a doubt the favorite, and the fans’ choice, is Sevilla’s Jorge Sampaoli.

His work for Chile and Sevilla has been outstanding and picked up admiration the world over. And he leads many betting sites’ odds to get the job.

But FC Barcelona has often taken unorthodox choices for managers, so it’s by no means a lock.

There are a glut of possible alternatives - Mauricio Pochettino, Arene Wenger, Oscar Garcia, Laurent Blanc, Eusebio Sacristán, Ernesto Valverde, Eduardo Berizzo, Frank de Boer, Ronald Koeman and Lucho’s #2 man, Juan Carlos Unzué, are also rumored to be on the list.

Of these, I think Valverde could be the second-most likely behind Sampaoli, despite not having nearly as much of a following among fans. It’s known Barcelona have been following him for a while.

We will continue to get more rumors and more information as the season wears on.