Unorthodox Spain coach Luis Enrique whipped his squad up into a frenzy ahead of their first game against Costa Rica with an inspired mix of mind games, distraction tactics, and bold selection calls. Luis Enrique, who was a player in that era, wants to combine the two with a ruthless streak accompanying the passing football. Winger Marco Asensio had only started one league game for Real Madrid but Luis Enrique picked him at centre-forward and he scored the second in the rout. The fact that he was represented by Ivan de la Peña, a friend of Luis Enrique, increased the murmurs that this was a decision made for non-football reasons. Barcelona president Joan Laporta is another with his eye on the Spain coach.
Continue reading...