A historic comeback against Paris Saint-Germain may not have changed Luis Enrique’s mind about leaving as Barcelona coach at the end of the season, but it has certainly helped assistant coach Juan Carlos Unzue’s candidacy.
The Barcelona board are hesitant to give the job to an outsider given the results under Gerardo Tata Martino, and as a result, have on more than one occasion shared how they want someone with an inside knowledge of the club.
Had Luis Enrique not been intent on leaving, the Barcelona board have been satisfied with the job the Asturian has done thus far, so continuity is something the Catalan club currently value.
If president Josep Maria Bartomeu, technical secretary Robert Fernandez and Institutional director Albert Sole decide to opt for Unzue, they’ll be following a similar transition of power then when Pep Guardiola left assistant coach Tito Vilanova in charge.
The ex-Blaugrana keeper was Andoni Zubizarreta’s understudy in goal, and spent two seasons learning under Johan Cruyff.
During Frank Rijkaard’s successful spell, Unzue was goalkeeper coach for the entirety of the Dutch coach’s stay.
Under Pep Guardiola, he once again shined as a goalkeeping coach, with Victor Valdes putting in several memorable performances in the Champions League finals, as the team’s football became celebrated throughout the world.
Finally, he joined Luis Enrique as an assistant coach at Celta Vigo in 2013, and if Lucho were the one in charge right now, there is no doubt he’d promote Unzue to the head coach position.
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