Coach Luis Enrique - the pain of losing a child creates a thorny father

Luis Enrique - Photo 1.

Coach Enrique is always at odds with the media - Photo: REUTERS

The scary thorns

Luis Enrique is a very special strategist. His specialness lies not only in his football philosophy, but also in the way he persistently pursues it.

That distinction is evident in some of their technical decisions. This winter, PSG boldly let go of Kolo Muani, their best striker.

After loaning Muani to Juventus, PSG only has one striker left, Goncalo Ramos.

How big is Ramos's role for PSG? To illustrate, the Portuguese striker has played 11 Champions League matches, 10 of which were from the bench. For example, in the 2-1 win over Arsenal on the morning of May 8, he entered the field in the 88th minute.

Overall, Ramos has no other role for PSG, other than to save the energy of some key players in certain situations.

And to fill the void left by Muani, coach Enrique chose Dembele - a player that the football world has long labeled as "fast and bad at kicking".

But it's okay, Dembele in Enrique's hands still becomes a comprehensive super striker, with 33 goals and 10 assists in all competitions.

If Dembele is not there (like in the first part of the recent match against Arsenal, because he has not fully recovered from his injury), the person Enrique pushes into the center forward position could be Kvaratskhelia, Barcola, or Doue - all of whom are players with great technique and speed.

All of this reflects a football philosophy that Enrique pursues, the football of control. Any player who does not support the football of control will be eliminated by the Spaniard.

Before PSG, fans had seen Enrique do the same thing at AS Roma, at Barca, and at the Spanish national team. Wherever he went, Enrique created controversy, and in any situation, he was always steadfast in his philosophy.

When he was still leading Spain, Enrique was hated by the media at home, and even the fans, because of his strong ego. He pushed aside almost all of Real Madrid's superstars to focus on Barca's tiki-taka style.

While at PSG, he repeatedly clashed with the French media, and even his own players. Before turning Dembele into a super striker, Enrique once punished him for disciplinary issues.

Behind that rugged appearance, is a terrifyingly thorny personality. The thorny appearance of a reckless person.

The tragedies of life

Those who understand Enrique's life will more or less sympathize with him. In 2019, the former Spanish football star experienced the pain of losing a child, when his youngest daughter Xana passed away from bone cancer.

Previously, coach Luis Enrique was described as a family man. The Spanish strategist's social media accounts are always filled with pictures of his wife and children, filled with an optimistic and happy atmosphere.

In June 2019, Mr. Enrique suddenly resigned as head coach of the Spanish national team without giving a clear reason. And in August, fans learned the story behind it, when his daughter, only 9 years old, passed away from a rare cancer.

It is known that the Spanish strategist has taken half a year off work to be with his daughter.

The pain of losing his son turned Enrique, already a charismatic character, into a loner. He deleted almost all family photos from social media, and often cycled alone to distract himself.

In November of that year, coach Enrique returned to lead the Spanish national team, creating a noisy scandal.

During the time Mr. Enrique temporarily stepped down as head coach, the Spanish team was assigned to assistant Robert Moreno - described as Mr. Enrique's most trusted confidant, having been with him since his time at Barca.

After a while, Coach Moreno expressed to the Spanish Football Federation that he wanted to continue as head coach of the team until the end of Euro 2020 (held in 2021), even if Mr. Enrique returned.

Luis Enrique said he felt "deeply betrayed". The Spanish Football Federation sided with the former Barca player, and removed Moreno from the national team.

Enrique's next three years as Spain coach were filled with controversy. He ruthlessly ousted many of Real Madrid's veterans, built a Barca-based squad, and persisted with his brand of controlling football.

Luis Enrique - Photo 2.

The happiness of PSG players in the victory over Arsenal in the early morning of May 8 - Photo: REUTERS

By the end of 2022, coach Luis Enrique resigned after a humiliating defeat at the World Cup. No one stood by the former Gijon-born player because of his thorny personality. After Luis Enrique left, many major newspapers in Spain rejoiced as if they had eliminated a traitor.

Many people believe that Enrique's coaching career has also come to a dead end since then. But in the summer of 2023, he returned to PSG.

That appointment was initially met with a fair amount of ridicule, as PSG were left in disarray after Messi and Neymar left. The other superstar, Mbappe, also insisted on leaving.

But Enrique has revived the team, and himself. After an experimental season (which still saw him reach the Champions League semi-finals), Enrique is free to build his own PSG.

Mbappe has now left, so that the team is no longer immersed in negative controversies. Players who are not suitable for the tactics such as Muani, Ugarte... also left.

In the afternoon, PSG completely satisfied Enrique's wishes, bringing in new technical players such as Kvaratskhelia, Joao Neves, Doue...

Enrique and PSG's journey is not complete, there is still one more Champions League final for PSG to reach the historic championship. As for Luis Enrique, it could be the second Champions League trophy in his coaching career.

A trophy to shatter criticism, prove philosophy, and ease the losses in the life of a talented strategist.