Spaniard would be perfect fit at Old Trafford but the timing is not ideal with Qatar 2022 finals starting in November
Luis Enrique takes his Spain side to Barcelona on Friday for a friendly against Albania. Despite hosting their games all over the country, Spain seldom play in the country’s second city and this will be their first friendly in Barcelona since 2004.
The issue of Catalan independence has calmed and the game will be at Espanyol’s 41,000-seater home on the outskirts of Barcelona, where many residents are internal immigrants who would identify with Spain anyway.
Enrique, 51, knows the country better than most. Born and raised in the northern city of Gijon, Asturias, he started out at local club Sporting, which he still supports. He stood on the terraces near the ultra fans, once hiding a copy of the local newspaper from his parents when he was pictured near them.
He was still a teenager when he broke into the first team and roomed with veteran Irish defender Kevin Moran. Luis Enrique was the lungs of every team he played for — great teams where, in his words, he faced the pressure of winning every game. He didn’t want to leave Sporting but they needed the money so he spent five years with Real Madrid.
They bought him as a goalscorer, played him as a defender and settled on him being a midfielder. It made him the clever, skilful footballer he became. He wanted to play in England. He loved English fan culture and, in later years, couldn’t believe that Newcastle United fans applauded their team after being relegated, but there were only offers from Barcelona and Italy.
He moved to Barcelona — the criticism didn’t bother him one bit and he laughed at the idea that Real Madrid Ultras made a whack-a-mole style game, with his head replacing the mole.
He played behind Brazilian striker Ronaldo for a season.
“Football is a party not a prison,” he said. “And he was the most spectacular player I’ve ever seen,” he said. “He did things I’d never seen before. We’re now used to seeing Messi dribble past six players, but not then.”
Luis Enrique found his nose for scoring again and became club captain. He played in the same team as Pep Guardiola and worked under Bobby Robson and Louis van Gaal. Jose Mourinho was there, too.
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