Luis Enrique, the last chance

Spain’s Euro is not really brilliant. La Roja started their tournament with two draws, against Sweden (1-1) and Poland (0-0), and things are going badly at home. Luis Enrique’s troops certainly dominated the two games overall, securing a good number of chances and would perhaps have taken 6 points with a little more success on the part of the offensive players … But not enough to satisfy observers Spaniards, who in addition to pointing the finger at certain players like Alvaro Morata or Rodri and evoking a lack of overall character in the team, especially after Luis Enrique.

We know, the former Barça is stubborn. Sometimes bordering on insolence and very sure of himself in his press conferences, he had already aroused strong reactions to the announcement of his list, deciding for example to select only 24 players rather than 26, and passing of certain players like Iago Aspas or Jesus Navas, demanded by public opinion. Then, some decisions, such as his stubbornness with Morata at the forefront, the presence of Marcos Llorente as a right-back, and others still, are also in the sights. Our Spanish colleagues also criticize the former Real Madrid and FC Barcelona striker for being too tactically rigid, refusing to trade his 4-3-3 against another system in case of difficulty, mainly during the match.

The Fed has it in its sights

Against Slovakia tonight, Spain is playing its ticket for the eighth. Just like the Iberian coach plays his head. Even if the latest messages from the Federation are meant to be positive, publicly at least, some would be very annoyed internally. By the results, but also by the behavior of the coach, who notably criticized, before and after the meetings, the state of the lawn at the Stade de la Cartuja. The “official” stadium of La Roja, since the Federation signed an agreement with the Andalusian government. A bit like a José Mourinho during his time in Madrid, the Asturian crystallizes everyone’s attention and, in a way, protects his players.

If it is not unanimous, the former Spain international still retains defenders, or at least fans who relativize and find mitigating circumstances for the poor results of La Roja, such as the lack of success of the offensive players, or a much less qualitative breeding ground than previously. Against the Slovaks, Luis Enrique is faced with a dilemma: to insist with his 4-3-3 and the same eleven as in the first two meetings (there was only one change from one match to another) , or upset everything. During Tuesday’s training, the Iberian coach tested an eleven with a few novelties, such as Eric Garcia, Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Alcântara and Pablo Sarabia. To be continued…