Spain (National Football)

Spain manager Robert Moreno has said Barcelona winger Ansu Fati was in his "preliminary squad" and stood a chance of being selected for upcoming the team's UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers prior to his injury. 

Fati, 16, has demonstrated spectacular form in only a handful of Barcelona appearances and looks like a special talent after making his professional debut on August 25.

Spain will face Norway and Sweden on October 12 and 15, respectively. When asked about Fati's involvement, Moreno told reporters: "He was in the preliminary squad. Everything that he's doing is exceptional. ... He was injured, which is the most important reason [why he was not selected]."

The youngster came off the bench to net his first senior goal in a 2-2 draw with Osasuna on August 31, becoming the club's youngest scorer in the process:

📌 Barça's youngest ever scorer
📌 Third youngest scorer in #LaLigaHistory

At 16, he's already an @FCBarcelona superstar. 💙❤️

Ladies and gentlemen...

🌟 ANSU FATI 🌟 pic.twitter.com/M7COCrXVjZ

— LALIGA English (@LaLigaEN) September 5, 2019

Spain under-21 coach Luis de la Fuente also spoke to the media on Friday and added there were issues with FIFA regarding Fati's clearance that also prevented him from registering for Spain.

"I waited until the last moment. But it is for the simple reason that he is not selectable. I do not know the details, but he lacks some procedure with FIFA," he said.

Moreno added:

"We thought he could do well. He was on the pre-list, we value him, there were a number of events that have been going on, bureaucratic issues after he was injured and we could not summon him.

"Allow me for this exception when talking about someone who is not on the list, but he was a special case that had to be treated in an honest way."

Commentator Tiago Estevao argued it was premature to call Fati into the senior setup given his age, pointing to previous Spanish starlets who didn't fulfil their potential:

https://twitter.com/TiagoEstv/status/1178432697259216897

Fati was born in Guinea-Bissau but moved to Spain with his family at a young age. He grew up in Seville and spent several years in the Sevilla academy before moving to Catalonia to join La Masia in 2012.

The prodigy has taken no time to settle in among La Liga's senior stars, having scored and assisted in a 5-2 win over Valencia in September (his first start for the club):

The name on everyone's lips after this game was ANSU FATI...💎🌟

📺 Highlights #BarçaValencia pic.twitter.com/19XgX7O8tl

— LALIGA English (@LaLigaEN) September 14, 2019

One could argue Fati's development would be better served moving more gradually through Spain's under-age teams, but only time will tell.

Sport reported Fati has recovered from the injury that sidelined him for the 2-1 UEFA Champions League win over Inter Milan on Wednesday and could be fit for Sunday's visit of Sevilla.

Sergio Ramos has set himself the target of making 200 appearances for Spain after he pulled level with former Real Madrid team-mate Iker Casillas as the nation's most-capped player. 

Ramos made his 167th appearance for La Roja when they beat the Faroe Islands 4-0 on Sunday.

"Records are there to be broken," he said after the game, per Marca. "I hope that this momentum, enthusiasm and ambition always accompanies me and that I reach 200 games, which is the objective. You have to make it difficult."

167 - Sergio Ramos has played 167 international games for Spain equaling Iker Casillas as the player to have appeared more often ever. Captain pic.twitter.com/dneCOSFUuz

— OptaJose (@OptaJose) September 8, 2019

Ramos and Casillas sit top of Spain's all-time most-capped players ahead of former Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez, who played for the team 133 times before he retired from international duty in 2014. 

The next highest active player after Ramos is Sergio Busquets, on 114.

Remarkably, despite being a centre-back, Ramos has also chipped in with an impressive share of goals for his country:

Sergio Ramos is Spain's joint 10th all-time top scorer 😲

5️⃣9️⃣ David Villa
4️⃣4️⃣ Raul
3️⃣8️⃣ Fernando Torres
3️⃣5️⃣ David Silva
2️⃣9️⃣ Fernando Hierro
2️⃣7️⃣ Fernando Morientes
2️⃣6️⃣ Emilio Butragueno
2️⃣3️⃣ Alfredo Di Stefano
2️⃣2️⃣ Julio Salinas
2️⃣1️⃣ Michel
2️⃣1️⃣ Sergio Ramos pic.twitter.com/uYIs6Ei59y

— GOAL (@goal) September 8, 2019

As the defender made his appearance on Sunday, Casillas congratulated him:

Enhorabuena por esos 167 partidos amigo!! Espero que sean muchos más. Grandes momentos los que hemos vivido con la @SeFutbol. 🇪🇸 🔝 @sergioramos pic.twitter.com/KDbulbWiNh

— Iker Casillas (@IkerCasillas) September 8, 2019

Ramos added: "I had the opportunity to debut young, and I've had the confidence of the Spain coaches over the years. I'm flattered by Iker's praise. I still have to overcome [his number], and I hope I can play for this country for many more years."

The 33-year-old made his debut for Spain in 2005, shortly before his 19th birthday.

He has been a regular ever since, helping La Roja win the UEFA European Championships in 2008 and 2012, either side of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In 2016, he took over from Casillas as captain.

He can become the standalone record appearance-maker on October 12 if he plays in Spain's Euro 2020 qualifier with Norway.

Although 200 caps is an ambitious target, he's still a regular for club and country even as he enters his twilight years, so it's not impossible that he'll reach the milestone before he hangs up his boots.

Spain continued their perfect run through UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying after beating the Faroe Islands 4-0 on Sunday when Rodrigo Moreno and Paco Alcacer netted two apiece for the hosts.  

Valencia striker Rodrigo continued his run in the XI and scored an early breakthrough, adding a second after half-time break to ease tensions at the Estadio Municipal in Gijon. 

Alcacer entered the fray after an hour and left it late to score another two in the last three minutes of the match.

Robert Moreno maintained his winning start as Spain manager, with La Roja now seven points clear at the top of their pool following Sweden's 1-1 draw at home to Norway.

Sergio Ramos started in his 167th appearance for Spain, equalling Iker Casillas as the country's all-time-record cap-holder.

There was a minute's silence held before kick-off to remember Xana Enrique, the nine-year-old daughter of former Spain manager Luis who died in August:

A minute's silence was held before Spain vs. Faroe Islands in memory of Luis Enrique’s daughter Xana, who recently passed away ❤️ pic.twitter.com/xjT5CiUACk

— B/R Football (@brfootball) September 8, 2019

Spain had control of the clash from the first whistle and played the vast majority of football in and around the Faroe Islands half.

It took Robert Moreno's side 29 minutes to break the deadlock in Thursday's 2-1 win away to Romania, but Rodrigo put the hosts ahead in less than half that time in Gijon.

Mikel Oyarzabal forced his way into the box and dug a pass out from under his feet to put his team-mate in front of an open goal, per Valencia's official Twitter account:

Rodrigo Moreno's goal in pictures!😎 https://t.co/SmarRy4sz6

— Valencia CF (@valenciacf_en) September 8, 2019

The home side set up camp near the halfway line and advanced on the Faroe Islands goal searching for a second. Their guests, meanwhile, managed a single tame attempt in the first 45 minutes, per Flashscore.com.

The Faroe Islands played so little in the Spain half that there was cause for comment when they did finally open a chance in front of Manchester United No. 1 David De Gea:

Shot on goal from the Faroe Islands! It's a bit of a trundler though, so De Gea has time to go to ground and grab it. https://t.co/O52jTtwJAy pic.twitter.com/wnJS58tkB7

— AS USA (@English_AS) September 8, 2019

Coach Lars Olsen's side displayed proper defending for much of the half, however, and were equal to Spain's attack for the most part, albeit failing to provide much threat of their own.

Thiago Alcantara almost scored a picturesque volley directly from a corner in the 37th minute, with goalkeeper Gunnar Nielsen just about agile enough to get down to his left and save in time.

The visitors looked content to settle on a one-goal deficit heading in at the break, while Moreno knew his side had thus far failed to meet expectations as overwhelming favourites.

Spain made no changes at the break, but whatever was said took effect when Rodrigo doubled his and the team's tally five minutes after the restart.

Thiago—who picked up a yellow at the end of the first half—sent Rodrigo into space down the right, but it was the Valencia's star's fine work to cut in and finish via the aid of a deflection.

Alcacer came on with half an hour remaining but left it until the final three minutes to contribute his brace, signalling to Moreno that perhaps he should be a part of the starting plans moving ahead.

Despite the clean sheet, Real Madrid's Dani Carvajal was one member of Spain's defence who didn't impress sportswriter Andrew Gaffney:

How long has Carvajal been putting in pretty average performances now: A year? 18 months?

— Andrew Gaffney (@GaffneyVLC) September 8, 2019

Spain have won six group games from six and retain their status as likely favourites to top Group F, while the Faroe Islands remain without a point and are all but eliminated with four matches remaining.

       

What's Next?

Both teams will resume their Euro 2020 qualification campaign on October 12, when Spain travel to Norway and the Faroe Islands will host Romania.

Spain are expected to continue their perfect UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying run on Sunday when they play host to minnows Faroe Islands in Gijon.

Caesars have handed La Roja odds of 1-100 to win, compared to just 35-1 for the visitors. A draw comes in at 25-1. The reverse leg, played in June, finished 4-1.

Kick-off will be at 7:45 p.m. BST/2:45 p.m. ET, and fans can tune in via the Sky Go app and ESPN 3.

La Roja are on a six-match win streak dating back to November's UEFA Nations League loss against Croatia, and they narrowly beat Romania on the road in their last outing.

Sports writer Dermot Corrigan thought the team played well, even if the 2-1 final score suggested it was a close contest:

Spain played really well / really positive - plenty of things to work on but does look like a new team is emerging under Moreno.

— Dermot Corrigan (@dermotmcorrigan) September 5, 2019

That win meant Spain have collected 15 points so far in Group F, five more than Sweden and seven more than Norway. They will almost certainly add three more to their tally on Sunday against Faroe Islands, who have yet to pick up a single point in their five matches and sport a dreadful -13 goal difference.

Faroe Island are among the smallest UEFA members in terms of population and have never qualified for a major tournament. The current selection's top player is Joan Simun Edmundsson, who plays for Arminia Bielefeld in the 2. Bundesliga.

La Roja are likely to score early and often against the minnows, and the result of this clash will be less important than the lessons manager Robert Moreno can learn about his team.

He started Kepa Arrizabalaga ahead of David De Gea in Romania, and the Chelsea man justified that choice, as observed by former England striker Gary Lineker:

Kepa selected ahead of De Gea and made a stunning save from Puskas, yes Puskas, in injury time to secure Spain’s victory.

— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) September 5, 2019

Moreno could opt to rotate his team against Faroe Islands, knowing his back-ups should still be significantly more talented than their opponents. That could open the door for the likes of David Lopez, Unai Nunez, Mario Hermoso, Fabian Ruiz and Mikel Oyarzabal to gain some valuable experience.

There's no need to risk veterans Sergio Ramos, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets this early in the club season when the rising talents are more than capable of dismantling Faroe Islands on their own.

Prediction: Spain 6-0 Faroe Islands

Spain captain Sergio Ramos has explained his celebration following the team's win over Romania on Thursday.

Ramos was on the scoresheet in a thrilling 2-1 success for his side in Bucharest, making it five wins from five games for the Spanish in UEFA 2020 European Championship qualifying Group F. 

The defender scored a penalty to put his team in front and picked up a booking for mimicking wearing glasses following the goal. After the match, the Real Madrid star said there was some confusion on the part of the match official, per AS (h/t Football Espana).

"I've already spoken to the referee," he said. "The celebration was to give the goal to my nephew, who also wears glasses, like me. It was to tell him there's nothing wrong with wearing glasses. It was directed at the camera. The referee understood, he apologised and regretted it."

Here is the penalty Ramos scored, followed by the celebration that saw him yellow-carded:

Sergio Ramos loves a penalty! 🎯

The Spanish skipper slots his team ahead after Dani Ceballos was brought down in the box.

Watch live on Sky Sports Football now: https://t.co/w4JUU9x3BW pic.twitter.com/I6MCiDZwbd

— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) September 5, 2019

Per Dermot Corrigan of ESPN FC, the defender attracted the ire of the Romania fans throughout the contest:

Ramos getting whistled by the Romanian fans - think Pique when he used to play for Spain by [many of] his own supporters - he was also booked for his celebration of the penalty.

— Dermot Corrigan (@dermotmcorrigan) September 5, 2019

After Ramos gave Spain the lead, Paco Alcacer doubled their advantage just after half time, putting La Roja on course for a routine win.

However, the home side rallied, with Florin Andone's goal and a red card for Diego Llorente setting up an absorbing finish. Spain eventually needed goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga to make a stunning save in stoppage time to ensure they emerged with three points.

Speaking about the performance, Ramos said his side need to be more clinical with their opportunities:

"We had a great first half but despite that, we couldn't get a bigger advantage. We have to learn to kill off these matches, so we don't get to the end of the match with the fear of losing three points.

"Winning away from home and reaching an objective gives us peace of mind, but we haven't done anything yet because we want to be top of the group and get 30 points. Now is to rest well and see if it's easier with our fans."

At the moment, Ramos is enjoying a purple patch for Spain in front of goal. His penalty on Thursday put him into the top 10 of the country's all-time top goalscorers:

Sergio Ramos is now in Spain’s top 10 goalscorers of all time.

He’s a defender. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/cCECB4kMOu

— B/R Football (@brfootball) September 6, 2019

ESPN FC put his goalscoring haul on the international stage into context:

Sergio Ramos has now scored more international goals than Beckham, Totti, Ribery, Coutinho and Tevez.

Not bad for a defender! pic.twitter.com/B46PqFYfsO

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) September 5, 2019

Ramos is regarded as one of the best leaders in world football and it's testament to his strong mentality that he's been prolific from the penalty spot for Spain.

In terms of his defensive play, the 33-year-old hasn't enjoyed the most assured start to the season for Real Madrid and he struggled in the recent 2-2 draw with Villarreal. Los Blancos currently have five points from their first three La Liga games.

Spain manager Roberto Moreno has said he would step down from the role if Luis Enrique wished to return to it. 

Moreno replaced Enrique in June after the former Barcelona coach resigned for personal reasons. On Thursday, his nine-year-old daughter, Xana, died five months after being diagnosed with cancer.

Xana, the nine-year-old daughter of former Barcelona and Spain manager Luis Enrique, has died five months after being diagnosed with cancer.

R.I.P. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/L6WMs2pfyo

— B/R Football (@brfootball) August 29, 2019

Per Marca's Miguel Angel Lara, Moreno said: "It's a very recent situation, and we're not going to talk about it. I consider Luis a friend, and this friendship goes ahead of everything else. If he wants to return one day, I will be delighted to step aside and work with him."

Moreno first took charge in Enrique's stead in March and guided Spain to a 2-0 win over Malta in a UEFA Euro 2020 qualifier.

The 41-year-old subsequently took charge of the team for June's qualifiers against the Faroe Islands and Sweden, securing 4-1 and 3-0 victories, respectively, before Enrique vacated the role on June 19 and he became the full-time boss.

Moreno served as Enrique's assistant at Roma, Celta Vigo and Barcelona from 2011 to 2017, before following him to the national team last year.

In three seasons at the Camp Nou, they won two La Liga titles together, three Copas del Rey and the UEFA Champions League, among other honours.

A nice look at Robert Moreno's first full-time 24 hours in charge of Spain here https://t.co/53v5SFRSsq

— The Spanish Football Podcast (@tsf_podcast) September 3, 2019

La Roja will take on Romania on Thursday before hosting the Faroe Islands on Sunday, in what will be Moreno's first games in charge as the full-time manager.

Spain are five points clear at the top of Group F, having won each of their first four matches, and another two wins would consolidate their position further.

"It's been a difficult week," Moreno added. "We will try to give negligible joy at a very bad moment. It's the only thing we can do."

Spain head coach Robert Moreno has said neither Manchester United's David De Gea nor Chelsea's Kepa Arrizabalaga are guaranteed the No. 1 spot for their national team.

De Gea has been Spain's regular starting goalkeeper since he succeeded Iker Casillas in the role.

But he struggled for La Roja at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and made a number of uncharacteristic errors for United in the latter stages of the 2018-19 season:

3 - David de Gea has made three errors leading to goals in his last four games in all competitions for Manchester United - as many as in his previous 123 matches combined for the Red Devils. Sloppy. #MUNCHE pic.twitter.com/Tbq59cYSU7

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) April 28, 2019

As a result, his spot as Spain's No. 1 is under serious threat, particularly from Blues 'keeper Kepa, who has been consistently impressive at both Chelsea and Athletic Bilbao in the last few seasons.

The 24-year-old has only six Spain caps, compared to De Gea's 39.

But former Barcelona assistant manager Moreno, who was appointed Luis Enrique's successor as Spain boss in June, has said there is no hierarchy among his goalkeepers, and De Gea, Kepa and Roma stopper Pau Lopez (one cap) will compete for the No. 1 spot, per Cadena SER (h/t Goal's Matt Dorman):

"My goalkeepers are De Gea, Kepa and Pau Lopez. I like that there is competition. Kepa is not ahead of De Gea, and neither is ahead of Pau.

"I want to get to the Euros with three goalkeepers who are ready to compete. They are all playing at a high level and there are nuances and differences between them. All three have good footwork. At Barca, we won the treble alternating goalkeepers."

Spain are back in UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying action in early September when they play a Group F double-header away in Romania and at home to the Faroe Islands. 

After winning their opening four qualifying games, Spain sit comfortably at the top of their pool on 12 points, five clear of Sweden in second. 

Kepa has started each of the Spain's last three fixtures—qualifying wins against Sweden, Faroe Islands and Malta—but Enrique was still nominally in charge for those matches.

The former Barcelona manager subsequently stepped down from the role for personal reasons after less than a year in charge.     

Spain reached the semi-final of the UEFA European Under-21 Championships after beating Poland 5-0 at Bologna's Renato Dall'Ara stadium on Saturday.

Goals from West Ham United summer signing Pablo Fornals, Mikel Oyarzabal, Fabian Ruiz, Dani Ceballos and Borja Mayoral were enough to end Poland's 100 percent start to the competition and move Spain above them and hosts Italy into top spot in Group A.

Spain cruised into the lead thanks to some typically artful passing through midfield; Fornals, Dani Ceballos and Fabian Ruiz eased through the gears with some eye-catching one- and two-touch combinations.

There was end product to cap Spain's pretty patterns, too, when Ceballos threaded a deft pass to meet the run of Aaron Martin. The Mainz left-back whipped in a low cross that Fornals managed to prod over the line for his second goal of the tournament.

.@pablofornals with 2️⃣ goals in 2️⃣ games for Spain 😎 #U21EURO https://t.co/fFhF07hQbN pic.twitter.com/E7H0v104YJ

— West Ham United (@WestHam) June 22, 2019

Ceballos and Ruiz were dictating the pace of play, so it was no surprise when the former was heavily involved again in Spain's second goal 10 minutes before the break. His slide-rule pass left Oyarzabal to finish smartly on the stretch.

It was 3-0 four minutes later when Napoli playmaker Ruiz, who had already struck the frame of the goal twice, finally found his range from distance.

Dani Ceballos & Fabian Ruiz - Betis youth academy deserves HUGE credit for producing these two geniuses.

— Football Talent Scout - Jacek Kulig (@FTalentScout) June 22, 2019

Betis academy graduates born in 1996:

Junior Firpo
Dani Ceballos
Fabian Ruiz
Francis Guerrero

Wonder how their U17 team looked like back in the days... pic.twitter.com/AjUpGoOo6i

— Football Talent Scout - Jacek Kulig (@FTalentScout) June 22, 2019

Poland have played a cautious counter-attacking style throughout the tournament that served the team well in wins against Belgium and Italy, but Spain looked capable of scoring whenever they strung passes together in the final third, particularly with Ceballos pulling the strings.

Dani Ceballos' first-half against Poland U-21:

• 82 touches
• 60 of 64 passes completed
• 6 of 6 dribbles completed
• 4 key passes
• 1 assist

Ridiculously good. pic.twitter.com/vO2OoSVI8B

— SCOUTED (@scoutedftbl) June 22, 2019

A fourth goal should have followed seven minutes after the restart, but Fornals curled his low effort just past the post. Ceballos also drew a pair of saves from Liverpool goalkeeper Kamil Grabara.

The fourth goal fittingly belonged to Ceballos via a free-kick in the 71st minute to cap another outstanding display at this level.

🇪🇸 Dani Ceballos (22) vs Poland U-21:

140 touches
102/111 passes
7/8 dribbles
5 key passes
4 fouls won
4/7 shots on target
4/6 long balls
3/6 tackles
1 assist
1 goal

No words needed. pic.twitter.com/AhLTX3AF9K

— SCOUTED (@scoutedftbl) June 22, 2019

There was still time for Mayoral to wrap up the scoring with a fine finish.

Spain's key attacking players delivered when it counted, something they will need to do again in the knockout phase. Meanwhile, Poland ultimately paid a heavy price for erring too much on the side of caution.

   

What's Next?

Spain will contest their semi-final on Thursday, with Germany, Denmark, Austria, Romania and France among their possible opponents.

Spain bagged their first win of the 2019 Under-21 European Championship on Thursday, narrowly beating Belgium 2-1 thanks to a late goal from Pablo Fornals.  

La Roja were the better team and took an early lead through Daniel Olmo, but Sebastiaan Bornauw hit back after 24 minutes. Spain had plenty of chances to reclaim the lead after the break, but they couldn't find the breakthrough until the final minutes, when substitute Fornals struck.

Both teams had lost their opening match in Group A, as Italy beat La Roja 3-1 and the Red Devils were upset by Poland, losing 3-2.

Spain dominated possession in the early goings but received a first warning after six minutes. Watford midfielder Dodi Lukebakio had the ball in the net, but fortunately for La Roja, he scored from an offside position.

Just two minutes later, Carlos Soler played in a nice pass for Olmo, who rewarded the Spanish pressure with a goal inside the opening 10 minutes.

AS' Robbie Dunne noted he didn't feature against Italy:

Dani Olmo. 1-0. Big things expected of him in this tournament and he didn't play in first game. Lovely finish after 7 minutes against Belgium.

— Robbie Dunne (@robbiejdunne) June 19, 2019

Spain continued to pile on the pressure, and Borja Mayoral nearly doubled their advantage after 11 minutes, blasting a shot over the mark from inside the box. Dani Ceballos also had a good look on goal with a free-kick, but his shot curled wide.

La Roja were in full control, but out of nowhere, Belgium pulled level after 24 minutes. A cross was worked back to Bornauw, and his effort took a deflection off Soler before finding the back of the next.

Once again, Spain were unable to keep hold of the momentum after a promising start:

GOAL: Spain 1-1 Belgium

Sebastiaan Bornauw scrambles home for Belgium from a deep cross.

Similar story to Sunday nights openener for Spain as they start well, circulate in possession before being sucker-punched.#U21EURO #ESPBEL pic.twitter.com/0z4oaAmzqc

— Caño Football (@CanoFootball) June 19, 2019

The cooling break came at the right time for Spain, who immediately surged forward once the match got underway again. Ceballos found the post with a strong shot and put goalkeeper Ortwin de Wolf to work minutes later, while the stopper also had to deny Soler.

Belgium barely survived until the half-time break, and things hardly improved in the second half. Ceballos again found the woodwork, this time striking the crossbar with another free-kick, and Pablo Fornals aimed an open header right at De Wolf.

The goalkeeper was beaten when Ceballos showed up in front of him again, but the Real Madrid man couldn't keep the ball down, blasting over what should have been a second goal. 

Despite the miss, sports writer Joe Krishnan liked what he saw from Ceballos and Real Sociedad's Mikel Oyarzabal:

Would pay big money for Ceballos and Oyarzabal. They’ve got star quality. .

— Joe Krishnan (@joekrishnan) June 19, 2019

Fornals was the next man to go close, but his shot was blocked by Wout Faes. 

The Red Devils had a few looks on goal on the counter, but the bulk of the chances fell to Spain. Their pressure lessened in the final 20 minutes, but just as it seemed Belgium would hold on for an unlikely draw, Fornals blasted home from the edge of the box.

   

What's Next?

Both teams will be in action on Saturday, when Belgium face Italy and Spain take on Poland.

Spanish national team manager Luis Enrique has resigned from the position, with his assistant Robert Moreno taking over as the team's head coach.

Per sports writer David Cartlidge, the former Barcelona boss is stepping away for personal reasons:

For personal reasons Luis Enrique is leaving. Disappointing to see him go but given circumstances perfectly understandable. Family comes first - bottom line. Should be left in peace and not subjected to speculation.

— David Cartlidge (@davidjaca) June 19, 2019

Enrique took over as national team coach from Fernando Hierro after the disastrous 2018 FIFA World Cup campaign.

Hierro had been thrust into the role days before the start of the tournament, when Real Madrid announced Julen Lopetegui would join Los Blancos after the World Cup. 

La Roja needed stability after Hierro stepped down following a penalty-shootout loss against Russia in the Round of 16, and Enrique proved just what the team needed. In his first match at the helm, Spain beat England in a UEFA Nations League match at Wembley, and they have won all four of the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers so far.

Bleacher Report's Jack J Collins praised Enrique for his work with the team, and he believes Moreno is a great replacement:

Luis Enrique has done a wonderful job reinvigorating that Spain side after Lopetegui-gate and Moreno has been by his side for such a long time. Makes perfect sense continuity wise. Could be about to see the birth of another excellent coach. 🇪🇸

— Jack Collins (@jackjcollins) June 19, 2019

Cartlidge explained the two have worked together since Enrique coached at Barcelona B:

Rubiales is happy with Luis Enrique's work and wants a complete continuation of it. Moreno is the closest to Lucho and it makes perfect sense why he's put in charge. Anyone who knows him, worked with him, is aware of his ability.

— David Cartlidge (@davidjaca) June 19, 2019

The 49-year-old spent time with AS Roma and Celta Vigo before taking the Barcelona job in 2014. He guided the Blaugrana to two La Liga titles and the 2014-15 UEFA Champions League, completing a treble by beating Juventus 3-1 in the final.

Enrique was named FIFA World Coach of the Year for his efforts in 2015.