Barcelona vs Inter Miami: Catalan Club's Coach Xavi Hernandez Denied Entry to USA Ahead of Club Friendly

Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez has been denied entry to United States of America (USA) ahead of his team's club friendly game against Inter Miami on July 20, 2022. He will not take charge of the Catalan club in Miami game as his brother Oscar will oversee the match in his absence. The former Spanish star was not given green signal to enter USA by the state official due to his visit to Iran earlier this year. However, the Barca coach again submitted his request to get a entry pass, only to be denied again. Barca have went to USA on a pre-season tour in which they will play four games in USA. Inter Miami vs Barcelona Live Streaming Online: Get Free Live Telecast of Club Friendly Football Match in India

Xavi went to Barcelona airport earlier with his squad on Saturday but could not join his men on the flight to USA as he was not cleared to board due to security reasons. Later, Barca tried to arrange a private jet to send their coach to Miami, but could not be able to take permission from the US authority due to the his frequent visits to Iran. In recent times, USA have labelled Iran as their no-friendly country due to rising concerns over terror-funding links and association with Russia. Barca coach made a few trips to Iran in the last couple of months, due to his past association with Qatari Club Al Sadd as both coach and player. According to reports, he was advised to submit all the documents related to his Iran visits to justify his past travel schedules to the Middle East nation. But, the documents Xavi submitted were not enough to get allowed to enter USA as he has been denied twice by the USA State department to visit USA.

However, Xavi's brother would take charge of the sideline during Barca's game against Inter Miami on July 20. The club friendly match would be played at the DRV PNK Stadium at 5:30 AM IST (Indian Standard Time). The full squad of the Catalan outfit including newly recruited Robert Lewandowski have landed in Miami ahead of the match. Barca would take on Real Madrid in this season's first El Clasico on July 24.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 19, 2022 08:30 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).