Update:

Ernesto Valverde is weighing up his options at Camp Nou and remains unsure whether to take up the extra year he has on offer, according to a report in Catalan daily Sport.

The Barcelona manager’s contract with the reigning Liga champions expires in June 2019 and although there is a one-year extension written into the deal the former Athletic tactician has yet to decide if he will ask the Barça hierarchy to activate it. Sport stated that Valverde feels “less protected” in his position after the departure of former sporting director Robert Fernández and the arrival of Éric Abidal and Ramon Planes in his place.

Valverde to postpone Barça decision until spring

Full screen David Ramos (Getty Images)

Sport concluded that both Valverde and Barcelona are happy to postpone talks about another year at the helm until the spring. The manager and Barça president Josep Maria Bartomeu met earlier in the week to discuss sporting matters, according to regional daily Mundo Deportivo, with the consensus being that the final decision on Valverde's future will be made by both parties in the New Year when Barça’s season can be fully assessed.

Valverde was also a little consternated by a report that he would be sacked if Barça did not win last season’s Copa del Rey final after a humbling Champions League defeat in Roma ended their campaign in Europe. Barça went on to thump Sevilla 5-0 in Madrid to complete a domestic double.