“I was supposed to start, but I was late for training, I opened the door and he told me: ‘Don’t get in here.’ They didn’t even call me” | Relief

Luis Enrique (53 years old) he is a special person. One of those coaches who leaves no one indifferent. His explosive relationship with the presswhich has lasted since he became a professional player, made him a beloved and hated character equally. “Luis Enrique nothing like what we see on camera“Explains Jonathan Soriano, Barça B striker during Luco’s time in the Barça reserve team. This was the beginning of Luis Enrique’s career as a coach, through Rome, Celta Vigo, Barcelona, ​​the Spanish national team and now , He PSG, who will he meet Real society in round 16 Champions League.

What the players who passed through his hands at Barça B share is Asturian dating towards members of the locker room. “In close contact He is very nice and friendly. He knows how to manage a group very well.“, says Abraham Gonzalez in an interview with Relevo. Another important aspect is his sincerity. “He tells you things as they are and what he expects from you. Always walk forward with the truth“, points out Cristian Tello, Al Fateh player.

Honesty that has helped him beat many footballers such as Jonathan Soriano. “We played in Benito Villamarin.which was the most special game of the year because of the opponent, the stadium… It was the end. That week he told me, “You won’t play.” He did it in such a way that it was one of the times that Luis Enrique beat me the most because he didn’t have to tell me.. He beat me because he admitted to me that I knew what it was like to play at the Betis stadium. It was a situation that he handled and showed me how to beat me and my teammates.”

In addition to proximity, Luis Enrique never lacked a sense of humor., coach even with failure. “He’s excited” says Abraham Gonzalez. “He loves to interact with the players and He is very mentally developed. He could catch a joke, and that bastard would get mad at you if he wanted to.. He always had a way out, and when someone answered, he it ended easily“, recalls Ruben Migno, current goalkeeper of UE Cornella.

Yes indeed demand is a sign of identity during his journey through the benches. “One day I got stuck in a big traffic jam and was late for training.. I arrived as the conversation was ending and this game was about to make the headlines. And he opened the door and He told me: “Stay away.” I went from being a starter to not even being called up.. These are disciplinary measures, the rules of which cannot be broken,” admits Tello.

Ruben Migno also recalls an anecdote that angered Luis. “One week it was almost certain that the game would be suspended, and this was taken for granted. Some player went to a party, was late and found out about it the next day.. There, He became very serious. He gave his all as a player and as a coach. To do this you need to be firm and in fact it is easy to be firm and adamant with young players, but more He further revealed that if he had to do it to Totti or Messi, he would do it too.. “He had the empathy to convince senior players.”

Despite this, when things go wrong, Luis Enrique is a coach who understands the player. “He scolded you when you won. On the other hand, when you lost, he treated you very well. and he didn’t tell you anything at all. He knew when to do it,” Soriano admits.He spoiled the player much more in bad moments. He knew how to get players out of those moments,” confirms Abraham.

The Asturian trainer is also known as natural motivator, especially through pre-match videos. “At important momentslike when we played for promotion to the second division, I used a lot of motivational videos. I always remember the video of a father and son doing a triathlon.. It got to you and motivated you,” Abraham discovers.His strong point is making the team and players believe. “He gets the best out of everyone in the team,” Tello says of his Blaugrana reserve team coach. It got the whole team involved.He got the players very involved, from first to last. When it was your turn to play, you were ready because everything was set up in detail.“, points out Carles Planas.

On the other hand, Luis Enrique, throughout his sports career, has always demonstrated deep adaptation to circumstances, even to the point of a strong fixation on specific aspects. Ruben Migno comments on this The Asturian has gone from being “obsessed” with physical preparation to focusing solely on tactics.. Despite these changes, Soriano explains that as the week passed, the player became more confident in his plan. “On Monday you could see his legs shaking. risky pass and you’ve reached Thursday with a player who arrived with a different mentality. Luis Enrique stubbornly tries to instill confidence in the player“.

The hardest thing for your staffAs Carles Planas points out, It was preseason. what the Asturian has prepared. “Perhaps they were the hardest thing I’ve had in my career. Memory get up at 7:30 to drink juice and at best they’ll give you a cookie. You were going to run for a long time on an almost empty stomach on the golf course.. After that first visiting sessionyou came back for a little rest and it’s time for the second session with the mountain run“.

Some very physical workouts designed by a sports “madman”. “Us We arrived in Ciudad Deportiva at 9:00/9:30 and Luis Enrique arrived by bike after an hour and a half ride.. He got up at 7am to ride his bike. He was better than a lot of players,” Abraham says of his former coach.I often came to train on my bike, and the field was quite far from where I lived.“Planas also admits.

During his time in the Barcelona first team, the rotation of goalkeepers Ter Stegen and Claudio Bravo was constant.. The German featured in the Champions League and Copa del Rey, while the Chilean was assigned to the domestic competition. A way of interpreting the goalkeeper position he took up during his time in the Blaugrana reserve team. “He drove us goalies crazy.. He started rotating us, two games at a time, with Oyer. The second division year turned around when it was out of his control and he fielded three goalkeepers this season.. We are quite actively involved. Sometimes I heard him talk about why he did it. He understood that he was not the one who could deprive the player of the opportunity to play the game. I didn’t see the point“says Ruben Migno, one of the goalkeepers on the bench for the first time.

Finally, some footballers remember with a smile several moments with Luis Enrique and the party between them. The first of these was in Ibiza during pre-season training.. “He invited us to dinner and said:If you win the game, let’s all have a drink and I’ll invite you.‘. We scored the winning goal in the 92nd minute and celebrated in a big way. He invited us for drinks in Ibiza“Abraham reveals. For his part, Migno recalls how this goal was celebrated in stoppage time: “We celebrate it as if it were the Champions League.“.

Carles Planas, who was still young that year, did not participate in this walk in Ibiza, but he would have the opportunity to take part in impromptu carnivals. “We played in Tenerife during the carnivals and he allowed us to take our costumes with us. The condition was that we had to win the game.. If we did, he told us that we could go out and do whatever we wanted that night, otherwise we would all go to the hotel. We won 1-4 and We all went down to dinner in our suits. including Luis Enrique“.

In short, as some players who had the opportunity to train with him admit, Luis Enrique – special trainer. A very close person, at the same time serious and demanding, who He built a great coaching career through his character and communication with the player.. Now back on the bench, he has the opportunity to reach a milestone never seen before with PSG. Win the first Champions League in your history.