Ernesto Valverde will make decision on Athletic future imminently

Ernesto Valverde's future will become clearer in the next 15 days when the Athletic Club coach will tell the club if he plans to extend his stay at San Mames with his contract expiring. 

There are no clues about what could happen, although Valverde may have already decided what he will do and now just has to communicate his plans to the Basque club's president, Josu Urrutia.

An announcement is likely to be made before Easter in order to put an end to the rumours of recent weeks. And Barça are closely following events as they look to take a decision on who will replace Luis Enrique. 

Valverde has a great relationship with Urrutia and has always put Athletic first. He rejected an offer from Real Madrid to remain in Bilbao, but this time the circumstances could be different. 

Athletic's irregular form this season, with early exits in the Copa del Rey and the Europea League, have led to suggestions his time at the club may be nearing its natural end. Despite that, Athletic have faith in him to lead their new project and have tried to convince him to stay. 

The coach knows Bilbao is his home, but a call from Barça could change his plans. He's played for the club before and his clear that it would be a unique opportunity in his career. In Bilbao they say he's more likely to leave than to stay, while people close to him neither confirm nor deny anything. 

The only thing which is likely to be announced, though, is whether or not he will continue with Athletic -- nothing related to Barça. From there, all scenarios are open, but it's clear Valverde is the preferred option to replace Luis Enrique next season. 

Both Barça and the coach's people deny contact, although it's evident that Barça will know first hand what Valverde's decision will be.