The past, present and future

Those who know him say he is loyal to his own. Andthat he has always been like that. Without reneging on his principles and managing the group in his own way, Luis Enrique has overcome the obstacles he faced at the beginning of his work in the Barça dressing room to achieve a league title in his first season in charge. Handling egos has taught him lessons, such as patience. Those that know him say he relents more often now after an occasional fit of temper.

One of his hardest moments this season came from within. And it came out of nowhere. The Barça president sacked Andoni Zubizarreta for no apparent reason. Suddenly the Barça coach was left without the support he needed to do his job properly. Without Zubizarreta, he was left without support but also without an interlocutor, as Luis Enrique can often struggle to close the distance between himself and the media andget through the press conference he has three days. He often appears grumpy and eager for it to be over.

Meanwhile, those who know him say Xavi is also loyal to Barça, but that now he feels he has no choice but to move on. The midfielder has played less, much less than he would have liked. He has accepted the situation with resignation. He has accepted his role this season and has lent his coach a hand whenever he has needed it. No doubt Xavi has saved Enrique more than one headache this season. His career at Barça is filled with trophies, and I am sure he will one day return.

Now that Barça has secured the title, with the Copa and Champions League finals around the corner, now we know Xavi's future, it will not be long before we find out what comes next for Luis Enrique.