NEWLY-MARRIED Sergio Ramos has paid tribute to outgoing Spanish national team manager Luis Enrique on Twitter, with a message reading: “Every victory of the side will also be yours, míster.”
Luis Enrique Martínez took over as trainer for 'The Reds', or La Roja, shortly after last year's World Cup, when Spain was in crisis due to its manager Julén Lopetegui's having been fired by the Royal Football Federation (RFEF) two days before their first match for leaking his new appointment with Real Madrid, and his replacement, Fernando Hierro, quitting within the month due to the country's poor results in Russia.
Now, the ex-FC Barcelona trainer has been at the helm for 11 months, taking the national team through 10 matches, including four victories out of four in the bid to qualify Spain for next year's UEFA Euro.
Luis Enrique (first picture, left and second picture), who comes from Asturias, has had to leave his post due to 'family problems' described as 'of force majeur', but which have not yet been revealed.
These same problems meant he had to return suddenly in late March just as Spain was about to play an away match against Malta at the stadium in Ta'Qali.
His short press release said that the 'motives which prevented him' from 'carrying out his functions as manager normally' in March 'continue today', and as a result he has 'decided to leave the role'.
RFEF chairman Luis Rubiales – who came under fire a year ago for his decision to axe Lopetegui at such a crucial moment – says Luis Enrique's performance as national team manager had been '10 out of 10' and that 'the door would always be open' if he wanted to return.
His replacement has already been named as Robert Moreno, who took over from Luis Enrique during the crisis in Malta and has since led the Spanish national team on another two occasions, against Sweden and the Faeroe Islands.
Moreno is described as Luis Enrique's 'faithful defender' during their time together at Barça, Celta and Roma and is one of his closest friends, colleagues and allies – plus his techniques are very close to those of Luis Enrique himself.
The 42-year-old from Barcelona is said to 'watch and re-watch' videos of rivals playing 'a thousand and one times if necessary' to get a clear idea of what his players are up against and how to rise to the challenge.
He has been described by national sports media as the 'ideal' candidate to keep Spain on the right path, especially in taking the team successfully through to the UEFA Euro in 2020.
The bar is set high for Spain if – as looks very probable – it qualifies for the Euro, given that the nation won it twice in a row in 2008 and 2012, with a World Cup in between, albeit failed to repeat its stellar performance in the 2016 UEFA Euro or in the 2018 World Cup.
First photograph by the Spanish Football Society, SEFútbol
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