Luis Enrique analyzed the news of the Selection on the eve of friendly match between Portugal and Spain which will be played this Wednesday at the stadium José Alvalade of Lisbon.
Cristiano's Portugal. Regardless of whether Cristiano plays or not, our general objective does not change: to be superior as a block, to be protagonists in the game and do better than Portugal, to have more the ball to attack a lot and have to defend little. Portugal is a powerful team with a very interesting mix of young and experienced players. My opinion about who is the best player on the planet does not change, but it is worthy of praise that players like Cristiano and Messi continue to maintain that level of ambition, in that they are an example, they are topPositive players in Ukraine. “Ukraine have casualties due to coronavirus, but there is no more news. But as coaches there is always the option of calling others. I hope it can be played, because there are few dates. But health always comes first. I hope it can be played.”
The calendar. “Spain did not play three games in ten days more than a decade ago, but the players are used to it because all schedules are going to be tight due to the pandemic. In the friendly I have six changes and I will see which players can play longer.”
Ansu Fati is not alone. “The team is above any player, because the National Team is made to play in a certain way. I wish Ansu Fati could solve all the games for us, but that would be too much for him. Here we are going to give him peace of mind and pause, because he is a boy who has to go through stages. To return he will have to continue running in defensive tasks, that to begin with. But in the National Team there is no system for Ansu “.
Power in the center. “For me, Spain is the strongest in the midfield, and many players who are not here would be starting midfielders in other teams. But the secret is the team. You have to be supportive and work. I'm very happy with what I have in all lines, and there are also many others that could be incorporated. “
Kepa's situation. “I see Kepa in a situation that is not pleasant, but it is not the end of the world. It is the ideal moment to come up, to see what Kepa is made of. But what happens to him at Chelsea now is something what all players have been through throughout our sports careers. “
The false 9. “Any coach would want to have the best Suárez, Kane or Van Basten. As we don't have them, we try to reach the goal by other ways, to generate scoring chances with the wingers, points, midfielders, laterals …, and I already anticipate you that the rotation at the top will be continuous. There are many possibilities, with Ansu of course, but also with Ferran, Oyarzabal, Adama and resources to generate problems for the rival. They are midfielders with speed and overflow, and that must be taken advantage of. “
The goal belongs to everyone. “I am sure that our midfielders are going to score goals in the National Team. I hope it can be seen. But the goal is something collective, first you have to create chances and then I don't care who scores the goal.”
The departure of players. “The youngsters are going to improve in experience, they are going to learn languages and they are going to know other leagues and another football. But we lose quality and potential in our League. So the correct answer would be 'it depends'”.
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