There were no excessive preambles in the press conference of Luis Enrique, prior to the friendly match that this Wednesday the Spanish team will play against Portugal. As soon as you sat down, the first question had to do with Cristiano Ronaldo and the second with CR7 compared to Leo Messi. 'Fought' he had no problem answering with his usual sincerity.
“We are going to face Portugal. I don't know if Cristiano will play. The goal does not change for us. We will try as a block to do things well and generate problems, regardless of whether he plays or not, “he said. And he added in the comparison that “if you go to the newspaper library, you already know what my opinion is about who is the best in the world for me. What is worthy of praise is that both are turning years old and are keeping pace thanks to their professionalism ”.
The question about Ansu Fati was not lacking. “The team is above any player. Ansu Fati needs patience, tranquility and a calm climate that we will try to give him. To keep playing for the national team you need to keep running on defense. We would do him a disservice if we wanted him to solve each game for us. He is still a teenager. It is normal for the media to talk about him, but professionals know that no one is above anyone. There is no system for Ansu Fati, another for Ramos, another for Busquets … ”.
Another Barça player, Sergi Roberto, came up. “I see him very well. He has come as a winger, but he can play as a pivot and inside. He's versatile and smart enough to change roles during the game. “
Regarding another proper name, Kepa and his substitution at Chelsea, the coach assured that “the human component cannot be separated from the professional, but we see him well, whole and mature. He is cheerful and upbeat. This is not the end of the world. We have all been through this. It is an ideal time to see what Kepa is made of. There is always the positive side even if the situation is not to your liking ”.
Lucho also said that “Spain's midfield is the best in Europe. Even players who have not come to this call would be starters in other powerful teams. In some positions I would like to have more to choose from, but in most it does not happen ”.
As for the absence of a pure '9', he said that “any coach would want to have the best Luis Súarez, Harry Kane, Suárez or Marco van Basten. We do not have that figure, so we try to reach the goal through the association. We generate many occasions. Then you have to materialize them. Upstairs the players will be rotated a lot ”.
Finally, regarding the positives for coronavirus in Ukraine, Spain's rival next week in the UEFA Nations League, commented that “we know there are two casualties. Coaches can summon more players. I hope it can be played, although the first thing is health ”.