Luis Enrique- The challenges he faces as Barcelona manager

Luis Enrique faces a lot of challenges as he starts his Barcelona tenure

The appointment of Luis Enrique as the new Barcelona coach was met with excitement by all culés. The return of a club legend have made many fans believe that the dominating years under Pep Guardiola are about to return. Nonetheless, Lucho has an extremely difficult task ahead of him. The expectation levels of the fans have reached the heights of the Guardiola era, so Luis Enrique will have to hit the ground running.

His first and most difficult task is trying to build a new core for the Barcelona team. With Puyol announcing his retirement, Victor Valdes leaving the club and the uncertainty over Xavi’s future, Lucho has the strenuous task of replacing these club legends. The influence these three men have had in the success during the Guardiola years can’t be overestimated. To lose two and possibly three of the club captains in one summer will put a strain on Luis Enrique’s plans for Barcelona.

His focus would be to replace these players with the same quality and it is nearly impossible to find these types of players in world football today. These players had a great understanding of the structure and culture of the club, and more importantly were world class players who brought unprecedented success to the club. With Marc-Andre Ter Stegen already announced as the replacement for Valdes; it is welcome news for the Blaugrana. Ter Stegen has buckets of talent and potential and could fill Valdes’s position with relative ease.

As regards replacing Puyol, the problem facing Enrique is massive. Not only does he have to replace a world class defender, he is also losing a player whose leadership is unquestionable. Many times over the years in Puyol’s absence, Barcelona lose motivation in times of adversity and slip up in games they should have won. His will to win every game was so high, that Gerard Pique once said in an interview, “He's someone who, even if you're winning 3–0 and there's a few seconds left in the game will shout at the top of his voice at you if he thinks your concentration is going.”

Of the six games that Barcelona lost in the 2010-2011 season, Puyol wasn’t involved in any on them. This confirms his huge importance to the team and signifies a massive loss to the team. Some of the names currently been linked to replace Puyol are Marquinhos, Mehdi Benatia and Mats Hummels. With Marquinhos being too inexperienced and Hummels being too similar to Pique, the best choice would be Benatia, who at 27 years will now be entering into his prime as a defender. With many regarding Benatia as the best defender in Italy he seems to be the logical replacement for Puyol. If Benatia does sign, Luis Enrique will hope that he is able to restore defensive stability in Puyol’s absence.

With Xavi’s future up in the air, who knows whether he will be a Barcelona player next season. It would be great to see Xavi play for Barcelona for one more season. He has had a stellar career in which he redefined the role of the central midfielder. To replace one of the best ever Spanish players will be an extraordinary test of Luis Enrique’s managerial pedigree. With no one in world football really coming close to replacing Xavi, it might lead to a more direct style being implemented by Barcelona.

Will Fabregas be able to replace Xavi?

Culés for many years have wanted Fabregas to be Xavi’s replacement but that is easier said than done. In order for Fabregas to flourish, Enrique may adopt a more direct style instead of the possession football that has been so successful for Barcelona. So to let successfully develop Fabregas in this role, Luis Enrique may let Xavi leave but it will be a tough call and one that Barcelona fans will watch very closely.

His second task will be readopting the pressing style which was so effective when Barcelona were at their scintillating best. The pressing game that Barcelona used was synonymous to their success. However last season this disappeared for the majority of games, only reappearing against Manchester City in the Champions League and Real Madrid in the league. The loss of this pressing style exposed the Barcelona defence even more and led to the team throwing games away against weaker opposition which would have never happened under Guardiola or Vilanova. Lucho must fix this problem and fast.

The third change that is needed is to restore the balance of the team. When Barcelona were playing at their absolute best, the team had great stability and everyone was playng in their best positions. Take the 2011 team for example. The defence was perfect with Dani Alves being the attacking full back and Abidal being defensive minded. Puyol and Pique had a brilliant partnership and complemented each other wonderfully. The midfield trio was quiet extraordinary with Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets supplementing one another to perfection. And finally, the forward line of Messi, Pedro and Villa. The balance was excellent with all three pressing as a unit and winning the ball high up the pitch creating more and more chances for the team.

With two wingers of such quality willing to press at such a high intensity, Messi was helped in becoming the legendary player that he is today. The tireless running of Pedro and Villa generated a mountain of space for Messi to exploit which he did in such a majestic way. This sort of tireless running from the wingers and balance in the team helped the squad in a huge way and must be implemented in order for Barcelona to regain their crown as the best team in the world.

The final point which Tata Martino failed to solve in his season in charge and one that Luis Enrique must find a solution to, is how to play both Messi and Neymar in the same team. It is often said that great players should be able to adjust and play with other great players but this is not always the case. Great player such as Di Stefano, Puskas and Gento, Best, Charlton and Law and Xavi, Iniesta and Messi all played together to great effect but more importantly than being great players, they also complemented each other in a wonderful way. You get the sense that no matter what era these trios played in they would still excel and supplement one another. They had/ have this natural connection that is so hard to put into words.

You get the feeling that no matter how hard they try Messi and Neymar won’t be able to. All Barcelona fans hope they do because they could then establish one of the great, contemporary partnerships in football but it is difficult to see whether it will be successful. If Luis Enrique can somehow get them to gel, it will be a masterstroke but if the two players cannot generate a bond with each other, then Barcelona have a mammoth problem on their hands.

Luis Enrique does have a lot of challenges awaiting him as Barcelona manager but he equally has massive positives. He has an excellent squad, spending power that few managers can dream of and La Masia, the academy that continues to produce top class players. It is a fantastic opportunity for Lucho to prove himself as a manager and no better place to do than at the club he adores and which adores him.