Luis Enrique slammed Spain’s poor first half performance after their 3-2 Nations League defeat to England on Monday.
A Raheem Sterling double and Marcus Rashford’s finish ensured the Three Lions took a 3-0 lead into half-time and although Paco Alcacer and Sergio Ramos netted in the second period, it wasn’t enough to save La Furia from a first competitive home defeat since 2003.
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“The first half was very bad and we have to accept that,” Enrique said, as quoted by Marca. “We showed up late and didn’t deal with the pressure and their first goal killed us. We made a lot of individual mistakes.
“It’s wrong for me to say it, but I was wonderful at the break, as it would have been normal for me to kill the players.
“I didn’t change anything and I told them that all great teams suffer. I understand that this team, with their attitude, didn’t need a kick or criticism or three changes.
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“I needed to reinforce things, some nuanced changes at a tactical level and put them into a positive dynamic. There are times when you have to kick the table and s*** on everything and others when you don’t do that.”
Looking ahead, former Barcelona manager Enrique admitted Spain had been given a tough draw but reiterated that his side are still in good shape, having won their opening two Nations League games.
“Playing in a group against two World Cup semi finalists is not easy, but we are still dependant on our own result against Croatia,” he added. “We have to go there to win.”