The clock is ticking on Luis Enrique’s return to club management. After leaving the Spanish national team due to a below-par showing in the World Cup, Enrique’s spectre has loomed over every elite club manager.
Despite not winning any titles with Spain, Enrique remains highly rated due to his decorated club career. Winning a famous treble with Barcelona in 2015 and overseeing the birth of the iconic “MSN” trio have become hallmarks of his managerial career. Spain also played some wonderful football at times under him.
Having said that, Enrique remains patient in his search to return to club football. During his time out of the game, many clubs have sacked managers. Bayern Munich, Chelsea, and Tottenham are three of the elite ones. However, Enrique remains searching for a long-term project with a vision to succeed.
Luis Enrique wants to return as soon as possible. His plan was already clear after the World Cup: priority to clubs with the dream of Premier League opportunity 🇪🇸
Spanish coach would only accept long term project with clear plan/ideas — he’s waiting for the right opportunity. pic.twitter.com/n5ViwjlwHt
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) April 4, 2023
Here are the top potential clubs that could be a good match for Luis Enrique in the coming months-
Chelsea
Two managers sacked in a season is a record, even for a trigger-happy club like Chelsea. One thing that will not sit right with Luis Enrique then is the “long-term project” part of his wants.
However, if Todd Boehly is to be believed, he does want the club to have a long-term vision of success. It may be argued that Graham Potter didn’t have the “big team credentials” to lead the project and Tuchel was not Boehly’s man. Now with Bruno Saltor in charge on an interim basis, Boehly and co. have time on their hands to do their due diligence and select the best possible long-term manager for the club and back him to the hilt.
Luis Enrique, in that sense, would bring the best of both worlds for Chelsea if he is appointed. He is as respected in elite football as Tuchel due to his pedigree in the game. If he becomes Boehly’s man, he would also bring the best aspect of Graham Potter in terms of being Boehly’s man and the backing he receives.
Feel like it’s going to be between these two for the next Chelsea manager.
Luis Enrique or Julian Nagelsmann? pic.twitter.com/cLAWAPXoGV
— Futbol Chelsea (@FutbolCheIsea) April 3, 2023
Looking from a bird’s eye view, this is a move that makes a lot of sense. Will it happen? It remains to be seen. As of this moment, all the noise surrounding the club points towards them going for Julian Nagelsmann instead. However, Enrique is far from a bad option.
Tottenham
A step back in terms of club prestige? Perhaps. However, it can be argued that with Tottenham’s new ground and facilities, they have perhaps the most potential to break into the elite, and eventually surpass them.
Spurs have been searching for an identity and a transformative manager since the departure of Mauricio Pochettino. The Argentine ran the club like his personal project and was almost handed the keys to the kingdom when it came to his vision for the club. Only transfer backing hindered his project and ushered his fall.
However, now, with the stadium constructed, matches being played in front of fans, and Tottenham raking in the money, the time is right for a new manager to implement his long-term vision.
Both Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte are infamous for their “burn all bridges and win now” philosophy which is at odds with Tottenham’s approach.
The post-Antonio Conte era gets underway at Tottenham.
This happened this season. It feels like forever ago 🤯 pic.twitter.com/M1LFsWZNi2
— B/R Football (@brfootball) April 3, 2023
If Luis Enrique does want a long-term project with his next side, there are far worse options than Tottenham. It’s a club with all the ingredients in place to become elite, failing to take the next step. Legend status would await Enrique if he managed it.
Paris Saint-Germain
Christophe Galtier is a dead man walking at PSG. Eliminated from the Champions League b Bayern, the Parisiens are limping to the finish line in Ligue 1. Players look disinterested, the staff looks to be floating along, and the general feeling is that everybody is waiting for the season to end to hit the button on yet another soft reset.
🚨 Emmanuel Petit (French legend): “When I see the whistles against Messi, it's an insult to football. If I have any advice for Messi: get out of this club! PSG is not a football club!” @RMCsport 🗣️🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/MlNgQjTo2J
— All About Argentina 🛎🇦🇷 (@AlbicelesteTalk) April 3, 2023
Who better to lead a reset than Luis Enrique? UCL is the holy grail for PSG and Enrique can point to his treble to make his case. Moreover, two-thirds of that famous “MSN” trio now resides at PSG, with current Mbappe arguably the best player in the world as the third one.
The challenge at PSG is more about putting the superstars together to create a functioning team. Enrique managed it to great effect during his Barcelona spell. His arrival might also help their chances of retaining Lionel Messi who looks increasingly likely to leave.
PSG might have to sell Enrique on their sporting vision though. Nasser al-Khelaifi was at pains to stress that the era of “bling-bling” at PSG was over at the start of the season. However, the signing of Messi and the handling of Mbappe’s contract are just two instances of the club still putting players above the team.
Luis Enrique has always demanded the team to be unified to achieve their goals and that could be a sticking point. However, if PSG, led by Sporting Director Luis Campos, manages to convince Enrique about the sporting project, then he would be best placed to create a monster that finally takes the final step and bring UCL glory to Parc des Princes.