What’s the story?
Barcelona have drawn up a shortlist of five managers replace Luis Enrique as the next manager at the end of the current season says a report from Mundo Deporitvo. The five managers in question are Jorge Sampaoli, Ronald Koeman, Eusebio Sacristán, Ernesto Valverde and Juan Carlos Unzué.
In case you didn’t know..
The current Barcelona manager Luis Enrique announced that he will no longer continue to be the manager of Barcelona at the end of the season after his side beat Las Palmas in the La Liga. Since then, speculation as to who will be the next manager to take over at the helm has been rife.
Also Read: 5 Reasons why Luis Enrique leaving Barcelona is the right decision
Jorge Sampaoli, the Sevilla coach has been touted by many to be taking over from Luis Enrique as the coach, but the man himself has denied any connections with Barcelona for the time being. Ronald Koeman, the ex-Barcelona man has been whispered as a replacement in some corners and has done quite well for himself at Southampton and now at Everton.
Eusebio Sacristán, the current Real Sociedad manager had been the manager for Barcelona’s B side from 2011 to 2015 and knows the club inside out. He is highly rated and will be backed by members of the Barcelona board. Ernesto Valverde, the present Atletico Bilbao, and the ex-Valencia manager has been also touted as replacement owing to his connections with the Catalan giants.
Last but not the least, expectedly Juan Carlos Unzué the assistant manager has also been touted as a replacement.
The Heart of the matter
Quite expectedly the managers who have been linked with Barcelona are somehow somewhere related to the club (except Jorge, whose CV speaks for itself). “A super coach with a spectacular list of honours. And he can still win more” said Josep Maria Bartomeu after Luis Enrique’s announcement. At the moment, there is only one man who fits the bill.
What’s Next?
Quite expectedly Barcelona have started the process of finding a successor for Luis, and as Josep said they will be ready come to the end of the season to announce their new manager. The club will, however, look into each CV and make sure they have the history of doing things according to club’s ethos and traditions.
Sportskeeda’s Take
If these five are the shortlisted managers, which they rightly seem to be as (apart from Juan Carlos) all are capable and probably deserve to manage a club like Barcelona. Jorge is the obvious option, as given his prowess as a manager he might perfectly fit the bill.
Ronald Koeman, Eusebio Sacristán, and Ernesto Valverde are all capable and can take on the hot seat at Barcelona and continue their recent success.
