After Spain’s early elimination from the 2022 World Cup, Luis Enrique apologized and announced his resignation as head coach on Thursday.
Spain was eliminated on penalties on Tuesday against Morocco after a scoreless first half, second half, and overtime against Morocco.
The Royal Football Federation (RFEF) announced on Thursday that Luis Enrique would not be retained as head coach after his contract, which was set to expire at the conclusion of the tournament in Qatar.
Luis de la Fuente, who had previously led Spain’s Under-21 team, will assume the position, the RFEF subsequently announced.
In a statement issued on Thursday, Luis Enrique expressed his gratitude to those who had supported him while serving as the manager of Spain and pleaded with fans to support De La Fuente.
Luis Enrique’s reaction
“It all started four years ago and how fast time has passed,” Luis Enrique said in a Twitter post.
“I can only be super grateful to those who signed me twice (president Rubiales and sports director Molina), to all the RFEF employees with whom we share experiences of all kinds, of course, to the players who have been exemplary in their behaviour and faithful to the idea raised.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t help you more.
“It has been very special to be a part of this.
“Last but not least, to the fans who have uniformly conveyed their support to us at all times and especially in the most delicate ones.
“It’s time to say goodbye and in these cases just a little reflection… what the team needs is support in all its meaning so that Luis de la Fuente achieves everything he wants.”
