Alba relishing Club World Cup reunion with 'phenomenon' Luis Enrique
Luis Enrique will be reunited with some of his former Barcelona players when Inter Miami and Paris Saint-Germain meet in the Club World Cup.
Jordi Alba labelled Luis Enrique as a "phenomenon" as he prepares to face his former boss with Inter Miami at the Club World Cup.
Miami drew 2-2 with Palmeiras in their final group game to ensure they qualified for the round of 16, where they will meet UEFA Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain.
It will pit Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Alba against their former head coach, who was in charge of Barcelona between 2014 and 2017.
Luis Enrique led PSG through a successful 2024-25, winning Ligue 1, the Coupe de France and a maiden Champions League trophy, becoming just the second manager to win a treble with two separate teams, having also done so with Barcelona in 2015.
"I've said it [an infinite amount of] times: For me, he's the best – I think not just as a coach, but also how he manages the group," said Alba, who also played under Luis Enrique for Spain.
"He's a phenomenon. I'm excited to see him, as well as Rafel Pol, Joaquin Valdes, his entire staff.
"I'll give him a hug, but when the ref blows the opening whistle, try to beat him. Which is what all of us here are trying to do."
Suarez signed for Barcelona in the same season that Luis Enrique took charge, going on to make 147 appearances under him in all competitions and scoring 121 goals – only Messi (153) scored more for the Blaugrana during the Spaniard's time at the club.
"For me, along with Maestro [Oscar] Tabarez of the [Uruguay] national team, he [Luis Enrique] was the most important coach of my career, for what they taught me, for what I learned in the day-to-day with them," said Suarez.
"He's a coach who influenced me greatly. I already had a competitive DNA, but he injected even more into me.
"He taught me how to move within a space where I had to play a role I wasn't used to, not touching the ball a lot. Not to mention, on a personal level, a relationship of great respect and admiration for what he generated for us as players."
PSG's joint-heaviest ever defeat in a non-domestic match came in March 2017 (1-6 in the UEFA Champions League), against a Barcelona side where the Miami trio of Messi, Suarez and Busquets all played, as well as Javier Mascherano, the Herons' current head coach.
This will be the first competitive meeting between PSG and Miami, coming immediately after the French side's first game against an MLS opponent (2-0 v Seattle Sounders on matchday three).
It will also mark the first time Messi has ever played against one of his former clubs in a competitive match, with the Argentine great having featured for PSG between 2021 and 2023.
