Is Valverde the right man for the job at Barcelona

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Luis Enrique’s reign as the Barcelona manager is coming to an end this weekend. He will step down from his throne after Saturday’s match against Alaves.

Barcelona’s president had said that their new manager would be announced on Monday only after Enrique has managed his final game. But now we all know now that Ernesto Valverde is going to be the man who will manage the Catalans next season.

Now, the million dollar question,

Who exactly is Valverde?

Ernesto Valverde was the manager of Athletic Bilbao and he resigned from his post only this week. He gave up his four-year association with the club and is expected to take over Barcelona from the coming week.

Valverde has a bit of Barcelona blood within him having played for the Catalans for two seasons under Johan Cruyff.

As a manager, Valverde has a CV which is not too shabby to look at. He has previously managed a host of clubs like Villareal, Valencia and Olympiacos.

This was the Spanish coach’s second stint at Bilbao after having been with the club at the turn of the century as an assistant.

Valverde came back to the club after leaving Valencia in 2013. He was predominantly brought in to recover from the damages that Bilbao had suffered during Marcelo Bielsa’s regime. And he has done a fine job. He managed 212 games in his four-year period. And managed to win almost 50% of those games. He was also the first Bilbao manager to win a trophy in 31 years. And ironically he achieved it after beating Barcelona in the Supercup in 2015.

Also Read: Pique’s replies to Madrid chants.

Now the next million dollar question,

Is he the right man for the job?

Valverde is a manager who is known for his strong and shrewd tactics on the pitch. He is famed in the Spanish circuit for making a game plan which is predominantly based on his opponents weaknesses.

But Barcelona actually doesn’t play that way. They just go out on the pitch and do what they do best. And their opponents mould themselves accordingly.

Valverde is also a manager who is praised for his man-management techniques. He has the characteristics of handling individuals very well. But at Barcelona, he will be dealing with a totally different set of players. Players with much larger egos.

Will he be able to handle and please the likes of Messi, Neymar and Suarez?

Only time will tell.