Xavi has confirmed that he turned down an offer to return to Barcelona as their new head coach after Ernesto Valverde was sacked on Monday.

According to him, he received an offer from his former team but after accessing his chances at such a top level, he opted to continue his role at Al-Sadd since it was too early for such an opportunity.

"Yes, I received an offer from Barcelona in the presence of Eric Abidal and Oscar Grau, but I didn't accept it," he told reporters, as per Goal.

"It's too soon to coach Barcelona, but it will continue to be my dream to be Barcelona coach in the future.

"I told my family first and then the Al-Sadd players because they were following the topic. I wasn't in my best position during the three days, but I'm now totally focused on Al -Sadd."

READ ALSO:

UEFA changed the formation of their Team of the Year so they could fit Cristiano Ronaldo - Reports

Xavi holds the record of Barca’s all-time appearance and his apparent rejection led to the appointed of ex-Betis boss Quique Setien earlier this week.

He made known that although the dream is for him to manage the Catalan club someday yet he needs to establish himself from a level of less pressure and gain enough experience to be successful at the top.

"Now I start my career at zero, I can't start with a Ferrari or a transatlantic ship, I have to start with a small boat, a small car, test myself, gain experience, and yes, it's true that the objective is to return to Barcelona, but I'm calm," Xavi told Efe,via Barca Blaugranes.

"The idea is to start as a coach in Qatar, where there is not as much pressure, to test myself and to gain experience, and the objective is to return to Europe and most of all to Barcelona."

Xavi made 500 appearances for the Blaugrana and won a total of 25 major honours, including eight La Liga titles, three Copa del Reys, six Supercopa de Españas and four Champions Leagues.