Battle for the Barça job; Sampaoli and Valverde meet in Seville on Thursday
Two of the men who could replace Luis Enrique will play against each other at the Sanchez Pizjuan
Destiny would have it that on Thursday night, the day after Luis Enrique revealed he would leave Barcelona this summer, two of the favourites to replace him will face each other.
Jorge Sampaoli's Sevilla side welcome Ernesto Valverde's Athletic Club to the Sanchez Pizjuan for a La Liga fixture which now has a Blaugrana flavour. The photo of the handshake between the two coaches before the match will take on a special meaning given the circumstances.
The list of candidates to take over from Luis Enrique will be defined in the coming days, but there's no doubt that Valverde and Sampaoli will be analysed. The current Athletic coach has the slight advantage as he has previously played for Barça and has the DNA they seek.
As for Sampaoli, the Argentine doesn't have a connection to the Catalan club but his teams have always played with a style similar to that demanded at Camp Nou.
This season, Sampaoli is having a historic season with Sevilla, who are still in the race for the title and the Champions League.
It has been a more difficult year for Valverde, whose side have been knocked out of the Europa League and the Copa del Rey, while it could be argued they're slightly underperforming in the league, too.
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