Spain sack coach Luis Enrique after World Cup flop
Luis Enrique applauds supporters after they lost on penalty at the Education City Stadium in Al-Rayyan, Doha. AFP
The Spanish Football Federation announced the departure of the national team coach, Luis Enrique, after being eliminated from the World Cup and losing to Morocco on penalties.
The Spanish football federation named under-21s boss Luis de la Fuente as his replacement.
The glory of the “Atlas Lions” wounded the pride of the Spanish national team when they knocked them out of the final round, beating them 3-0 on penalties on Tuesday.
Spain was an unusual candidate to overtake Morocco, whether on paper or in its calculations.
They finished first in the group stage, which includes Brazil and Argentina in the quarter and semi-finals, respectively.
But "La Roja", with its stars and famous style of play, failed to find the field organization code for the Atlas Lions.
Spain suffered the fourth major loss in eight confrontations, and the first against a non-European team, after they were eliminated in 1990 by Yugoslavia 1-2, and in 2006 by France 1-3, and in 2018 by Russia 3-4 on penalties.
Luis Enrique commented on the loss, “We controlled the middle of the field and did not score any goal. We tried to create chances, but we faced an opponent with great talent and defensive characteristics. We had to be more effective. We had no space. Happy with what we did and congratulations to Morocco. They were better than us in penalty kicks.
The goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was amazing and I wish them success in the next round.”
