Everton boss Ronald Koeman makes Barcelona admission

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The Everton boss player for and was assistant manager of Barcelona.

Ronald Koeman has admitted to the Daily Mail that he did once see Barcelona as the next chapter in his managerial career, but it was long before Everton came calling.

The Dutchman has faced criticism in recent weeks after claiming that Everton’s star striker Romelu Lukaku needs to leave the club in order to fulfill his potential, and admitted he could see the Belgian one day playing for Barcelona.

Those comments prompted suggestions in some quarters that Koeman himself viewed the Toffees as a stepping stone, with Barca – the club he represented as both player and coach – high on his list of destinations.

However, in an interview with the Daily Mail this week, the 53-year-old insisted he has made no plans for life after Everton.

Asked if he would drop the Toffees in the event of Barcelona interest, he said: “No!

“No, no, no, no. No. I don’t think so. No. One time, when I went to Valencia (in November 2007). They always speak about Koeman and Barcelona. Everyone knows I have a relationship with Barcelona. Everyone says: ‘One day Koeman will be the coach in Barcelona’.

“I had a little bit in my mind that when I went to Valencia, it was maybe a good step to do the next step to Barcelona.

“But now I’m more experienced. You cannot plan what is going to happen. You cannot plan your life. In life everything is possible. In football everything is possible.

“You can’t say ‘I go to Everton, in one or two years, I go to Barcelona.’ No, no, no. Why? Maybe Everton will be bigger than it now is. Maybe Luis Enrique is doing fantastic for the next three years and they don’t need a coach. No! The best thing is to believe in the project: how Everton is.”

Koeman won four La Liga titles and a European Cup – among other honours – during his six years at Camp Nou, where he later returned as assistant boss.

Having led Southampton to consecutive best-placed Premier League finishes, the former Ajax chief has helped Everton to seventh in this season’s competition.