Al Sadd have informed Xavi he can leave for Barcelona so long as his buyout clause is met.

It's understood Xavi's contract carries a €1m release clause should Barca come calling.

Meanwhile, Marca reports Xavi met with the leaders of the Qatar club on Thursday, intimating his desire to taken the newly vacant job at the Camp Nou, and the meeting went well with the Al-Sadd board making clear they would allow him to leave for a buyout fee.

The negotiating of that fee isn't thought to be a problem, although the Qatari club are determined to keep him until after November 3, which would prevent him from taking charge of Los Cules' Champions League meeting with Dynamo Kiev.

"I'm focused on my work with Al-Sadd," Xavi explained in a press conference. "I cannot talk about anything else."

From the start of the international break, Xavi would be free to make concrete his agreement with the Catalan giants and officially take charge, and it's expected that negotiations will be closed in the coming days.