Barcelona coach Xavi Hernández has missed his team’s flight for a preseason tour of the United States because of problems with his passport, the Spanish club said Saturday.
The club said that the coach “will be able to (travel) in the coming days” and plans to join his team in Miami, where it will start its two-week American tour featuring preseason games against Real Madrid, Juventus, Inter Miami and the New York Red Bulls.
The club said that Xavi was unable to travel on the team flight on Saturday “due to administrative reasons and his passport.”
Spanish sports papers AS, Mundo Deportivo and others reported that U.S. authorities asked Xavi for additional documentation because of three visits he had made to Iran when he was player for Qatari club Al-Sadd. Barcelona declined to comment to The Associated Press about the reports.
