Barca turns to club legend Enrique
Print Edition
BARCELONA has gone back to basics with the appointment of Nou Camp legend Luis Enrique as it looks to bring stability and trophies back to the club after a season with problems on and off the field.
Luis Enrique arrives after an impressive campaign with Celta Vigo where it not only achieved its objective of avoiding relegation, but finished in the top half of the table while winning many admirers for its passing game.
The former Barca player, who hung up his boots 10 years ago, followed in the footsteps of teammate Pep Guardiola by taking over the club’s B team in 2008. In a three-year stint, he led it to promotion to the Spanish second division and then its highest ever position of third before standing down.
Barcelona this time has gone for a coach who is well aware of the pressures and strains of day-to-day life at the club following the resignation of Gerardo Martino on Saturday.
It has not always been easy for Enrique, who struggled as coach of Roma where he tried with limited success to introduce the short passing style of Barcelona to the Italian capital. But his Italian adventure did not go to plan but he bounced back well with Celta. The results he produced earned him the chance to coach at the Nou Camp, where he will receive a hero’s welcome from the fans who still remember him for his playing exploits.
An attacking midfielder, the man affectionately known as ‘Lucho’ rose to prominence because of his fighting spirit. He began his career as a player with his hometown team Sporting Gijon before moving to Real Madrid where he won the league in 1995.
Then the following season he failed to reach a deal to renew his contract and moved to arch-rival Barcelona.
Enrique became a key player for the Catalan side, helping it to win two league titles at the end of the 1990s. He was famed for his animosity towards his former club and added salt to Real’s wounds by scoring several times during heated ‘Clasico’ showdowns.
He will resume the hostilities as coach of Barca, where a lot of rebuilding is needed and the signing of keeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen is only the start.
Taking charge of a club with sky high expectations will be no easy task for Luis Enrique, but knowing the club as well as he does should hold him in good stead.
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