Setien, the first light at the end of the tunnel

Barcelona brought an end to the agony of the last few days and finally announced the dismissal of Ernesto Valverde and the hiring of Quique Setien as coach. Setien is, without doubt, the first light at the end of a long tunnel nonsense which has formed in the last few days. He's the first spark of excitement in the middle of the unknown. Because Setien doesn't have the classic condition required to coach at Camp Nou (he's not played for the club before), but he does arrive with the most important credential: he believes in the Cruyff model and his playing style should be the perfect marriage with Barcelona's. 

Setien arrives after three chaotic days. It is essential that he starts well and that the changes are quickly seen on the pitch in order to avoid dragging down the president Josep Maria Bartomeu and his board, who have overseen the breakdown of the past few days as if Barça were a small club. 

The good news is that Setien has shown himself to be a good speaker and it's likely the press conferences will be an improvement on Valverde, but it remains to be seen if he can bring dynamism to a team that right now looks stale. It remains to be seen if he will fit in a dressing room which needs a lot of work. He will not just have to convince Messi of his methods, but he will also have to find a way to motivate several players who right now are way below their level. In any case, Setien is the first good news in the middle of a crisis that Barcelona have brought upon themselves in spectacular fashion. 

VALVERDE'S ELEGANCE. The arrival of Setien means the end for Valverde, a coach with good honours that never quite managed to convince anyone, not even Bartomeu. Proof of that is that he has been sacked with Barça top of La Liga, in the last 16 of the Champions League and alive in all the important competitions. Valverde goes now, but the real damage was done in Rome and Liverpool. He leaves a legacy of extraordinary elegance, despite how he's been undersold in the last few days. He never had a bad word to say about anyone and, as is usually the case, the passing of time may do more justice to his impeccable conduct.