Barcelona coach Luis Enrique has suggested that he would love to see the club achieve the amazing feat of going 100-match unbeaten. It seems that winning matches and scoring extravagant goals just do not seem enough to the Barcelona coach.
The Catalans have shown tremendous footballing strength this season and are the front-runner to win the coveted treble second year in a row. They have now gone 30 games without facing defeat.
In a recent interview, Enrique said that although any club would be happy to go through the tremendous run of form which the Blaugrana are undergoing, for Barca themselves, an unbeaten run of 100 games would be ideal.
The Catalan giants extended their unbeaten run when they faced Celta Vigo last Sunday. The match saw a brilliant hat-trick from Luis Suarez and a goal each from Messi, Rakitic and Neymar. In a match that ended in a massive 6-1 victory for Barca, the major talking point was the penalty incident involving Messi and Suarez.
The 45-year-old manager, who was born in Gijon and played the first half of his career as a footballer there, will be in the dugout again when his team will face Sporting Gijon on Wednesday. Expressing his love for his birthplace, Enrique went on to say, “If it (unbeaten run) has to end anywhere, let it be at the Molinon. I don't want that to happen though, let's hope it goes on for another 100 games.”
I’m a Sporting supporter until I die: Enrique
Although Luis is banking on a Barcelona victory, he refused to dismiss his opponents by saying, "It's very important for us, we're playing against a very strong Sporting team who play well out of defence. They are one of the most intense teams and the Molinon has a wonderful atmosphere so we'll need to deal with that intensity and try cause damage.
"At last we're going to play the game in hand from the Club World Cup, this game gives us a chance to move a few points ahead of our rivals."
Elaborating on his Gijon-days, Enrique told the reporters, "I'm a member for infinite years, when I was a kid I would go with my family waving my flags - I'm a Sporting supporter until I die.”
When asked about the playing experience he had during his days and whether he enjoyed his football more than what the current crop of players do, he said, "No, I didn't.
"I was more concerned with trying not to get kicked by other players. I have a lot of respect for this squad. They are very fortunate to have been brought up the way they have and to play this possession football so much more. I didn't have that when I was playing."
