The announcement that Luis Enrique would be the new Chelsea manager may be favorable for a number of Chelsea players. In addition to the usual “clean slate” with a new manager, the Spaniard’s prior connections to a number of Blues players might be a huge asset for the team.
While the new owners look for their third manager in ten months, the former Barcelona and Spain head coach has met with the team. Enrique, 52, has recently made it very apparent that he intends to visit England.
With Bruno Saltor presently filling in for Graham Potter, who was fired on Sunday, he is one of the favorites to take over the vacant position. At this point, Julian Nagelsmann and Mauricio Pochettino are considered to be the top prospects in addition to Enrique.
Although Nagelsmann has worked with co-sporting director Christopher Vivell in the past, which might be to his advantage, Enrique has worked with a number of the present playing group members. Cesar Azpilicueta, for example, was under his management during the winter in Qatar for the World Cup.
The current Chelsea captain, who represented his nation 22 times while Enrique was in charge, commended Enrique’s demeanor despite the tournament’s poor start. After months of work, passion, dedication, and commitment, we had all envisioned a different conclusion, Azpilicueta wrote on Instagram. “Luis Enrique, and the entire coaching team, I want to thank you very much for the trust and wish you the best in the future.”
However, he is not the only one. Marc Cucurella received his first call-up to the international team from Enrique in 2020, when the Getafe fullback was chosen for his team. But Cucurella didn’t perform for him. Since then, he has been in and out of the Stamford Bridge squad.
A comparable situation is Kepa Arrizabalaga. At the beginning of Enrique’s tenure as Spain’s coach, he went through possibly his worst stretch of form. When asked why he decided to keep him off the 2020 squad, Enrique said: “Kepa is not in a great condition, but it is not the end of the world.”
“It’s the perfect opportunity for him to ascend once more so we can witness Kepa’s true abilities. All players experience what he is going through at Chelsea right now at some point in their careers.”
Since then, Kepa has taken over as SW6’s new No. 1 and may be able to hold onto that position should Enrique be hired.