Another unconvincing bit of news has come out stating that Luis Enrique is being considered for the managerial job at Arsenal. Arsene Wenger’s contract is set to run till the summer of 2019 and the board might already be looking into a replacement. The Frenchman’s tenure with the club might be coming to an end over a lack of silverware in recent years.
Things are quite different than the general trend that is being followed by the Premier League elites. A manager is appointed and if he fails to deliver a major trophy or two, he gets the axe. However, after spending 21 years with the North London side, Wenger’s job is still secure even though the Premier League title has eluded him for the last 14 years. The 8-year drought was broken after the Gunners won the FA Cup in 2015 and staged themselves as the club with the most number of trophies in the competition.
However, the club has fallen even deeper in terms of their title challenge finishing the previous season in the 6th place and only managing a plane in the Europa League. Qualifying for the Champions League somehow gave the Gunners an identity in Europe and this might be the last straw. They just registered a 1-0 loss to their rivals, Tottenham Hotspur and have fallen 8 points below the top 4 spots.
If the club does have to think about a replacement, Luis Enrique is a capable one. He is a decorated coach who has won 9 trophies in his 3-year stint with Barcelona. After a rewarding but at the same time exhausting period with the La Liga giants, Enrique chose to step down from his post and spend on sabbatical. The stress of being a Barcelona manager is no secret as seen in Pep Guardiola who also chose to spend a year away before taking up the head position at Bayern Munich.
Enrique will return to football but will it be at England? The 47-year-old has spent the majority of his managerial years in Spain along with a season away to the Serie A with AS Roma. He is not short on European experience and has beaten Premier League sides with his star-stacked Barcelona lineup. And the real question lies in whether he is capable to replicating that same amazing feat with Arsenal.
The Gunners have restrengthened the squad in terms of quality but Enrique might not be provided with the funds matched with that of Enrique’s former colleague, Pep at Manchester City. For now, it looks like Wenger will keep his job and Enrique might not wait another year to take over the post at Emirates.
