“It seems like a very clear offside” - Luis Enrique laments refereeing error in Spain’s Nations League defeat to France
Spain manager Luis Enrique has reacted to his side's 2-1 loss to France in the UEFA Nations League final on Sunday.
Kylian Mbappe scored a controversial goal to hand Didier Deschamps's men the victory. Enrique believes the Frenchman was in a "clear offside position." He said after the game:
"From the bench, you see very little but it seems to be a very clear offside position. But I am still deciding not to talk about what I cannot control and I will continue like this. We are going without the trophy and I think we have competed as you would against the world champion with physical potential and a quality beyond any doubt."
"It was difficult at the beginning but then we were aggressive, we carried the game where we wanted to and when we scored and it seemed like we could win right away but then they scored us."
Luis Enrique: “I don’t speak about referees. I only care about whether my team played well or not.” https://t.co/DeZhqARfKQ
The Spaniard continued:
"I have to watch the game, but I think we've played the world champions face to face. We had problems at the beginning but then we equaled the three centrals with the three points and we managed to prevent them from having continuity, to recover balls and many positive things. At the end you see the sad face and it tastes bad. But there is one more stone in the backpack and now to try again."
Spain played the UEFA Nations League with a number of unfamiliar faces, and Luis Enrique is happy to see his players settle seamlessly into the team.
He said:
"It is very important that whoever comes to the national team is trained to train. We try to generate that idea and I hope to have a lot of problems in the next list because every time we bring someone new they play at a high level.
France win Nations League thanks to 'offside' goal and Karim Benzema heroics #ESPFRA thesun.co.uk/sport/football… https://t.co/RPPfzXZo9X
The 51-year-old manager also praised youngster Gavi, who was a shining light in midfield in both the semi-final clash against Italy and the decider versus France. He said:
"Gavi not only does not clash, the other way around, he stands out."
Luis Enrique building a bright generation in the Spanish national team
Luis Enrique has done a great job since becoming the manager of the Spanish national team, especially in terms of integrating young players into the squad. The likes of Dani Olmo, Ansu Fati, Pedri and Gavi have all shone under the guidance of the tactician.
Spain had an outing to be proud of in the UEFA Nations League, earning a convincing victory over European champions Italy. They put in an impressive performance against France in the final, but luck didn't shine on them as they lost 2-1.