#360view: Even the treble may not heal Luis Enrique hurt

Andy West 03:02 08/06/2015
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Troubled: Luis Enrique.

    Returning to your former playing club as manager and promptly leading the team to a sensational league, cup and European treble: it’s the stuff dreams are made of.

    Having enjoyed such a fairytale season, then, how on earth can triumphant Barcelona boss Luis Enrique even be considering leaving the Nou Camp

    Conceding that you “don’t know” whether you’ll still be in charge next season certainly isn’t the kind of trophy acceptance speech usually expected of an all-conquering manager, and the doubt over Enrique’s future has served to cast something a shadow over the Catalan club’s otherwise joyous celebrations.

    How on earth has it happened? At first sight, the whole saga seems inexplicable, especially considering there is no suggestion Enrique is simply holding out for more money, which would perhaps be the most logical initial conclusion.

    But here’s the problem: FC Barcelona – as well as being, according to their motto, ‘more than a club’ – is also completely different from any other.

    Brand Barca is bestowed with such significance on local, national and international levels, and from sporting, cultural and political perspectives, that barely a day goes by without the eruption of some sort of controversy – whether real or media-fuelled.

    Winning three titles does not make Enrique’s position as manager immune to those trials and tribulations, and the precarious state of his leadership can only be understood from a wider context than simply Saturday’s Champions League victory over Juventus.

    Most importantly, as Enrique made plain immediately after the game in Berlin, is the fact that the man chiefly responsible for appointing him last season, former sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta, is no longer with the club after being sacked in January.

    ‘Zubi’ was more than just a recruiter, however: he was Enrique’s trusted friend and former team-mate, having been between the posts for many of his 62 international caps for Spain.

    Seeing him sacked, effectively made a scapegoat for the team’s troubled form at the time, is therefore bound to be extremely irritating for Enrique, to say the least.

    And that move was just one part of a bigger picture of administrative turmoil at the Nou Camp, where presidential elections will be held this summer following the decision of Josep Maria Bartomeu to take the club’s fans to the poll a year ahead of schedule.

    Bartomeu may well lose the elections, which means that Enrique, assuming he stays, is right now in the decidedly awkward position of not even knowing who his employer will be a few months from now.

    And another good reason for him to consider heading through the exit door is the widespread suspicion he has faced this season, especially from the media.

    The idea Lionel Messi, and not Enrique, is really in charge of the team’s tactical approach has been freely circulated ever since their turnaround in form in January, with the coach forced to repeatedly face cynical questions over who is the team’s “true leader”.

    Taking all that into account, he would be justified in tucking his three trophies under his arm, leaving the fuss behind him and delivering a pertinent parting message: let’s see how you get on now.

    Recommended