Luis Enrique: The objective is to win the Copa del Rey

FC Barcelona will make their debut in this years edition of the Copa del Rey and as reigning champion the team only has one goal. Luis Enrique made this clear ahead of the first leg of the round of 32 against Hércules: "The objective is none other than to win the Copa again as we have done for the last two seasons.”

However, the Asturian coach wants to take the cup step by step and warned his team of a potential upset: “We are returning to a competition in which we have great memories and to win it again first of all we need to beat Hércules. It is obvious that there is a difference in level but we have seen lots of times how teams from lower divisions have knocked out those from the first division.”

Luis Enrique was asked about his starting eleven and he responded by saying “my players don't need to prove anything, they need to enjoy the time they are on the pitch.” Furthermore, he stressed he is “a manager who likes to use different players because the whole squad is key for a successful season.” 

No signs of worry 

Following the draw at Anoeta, the Asturian coach assured the media that “the team is fine” and that those kinds of games happen every season. However, he was clear that they had work to do: “It is evident that we need to get better and be more consistent, but I don't see any reasons to worry. We are still among the favourites to win titles, but we do need to improve and we are aware of this.”

Finally, he offered an analysis of Barça's playing style: “We haven't changed our style. It is true that we have a very potent strike force and sometimes we look for them too quickly but this is something we are trying to work on. At the end of the day, we will maintain the same philosophy which has won us so much silverware.”