Luis Enrique saved a special moment to present his new son-in-law to the public.

You have to know that the coach of the Spanish national team has his own social media channel during this World Cup.

Because of the unfiltered information.

That's the official version.

Unofficially, Enrique may have realized that portraying the chronically gnarly Stoic is no longer quite up to date.

Late at night, while the trainer was still on the air, a viewer asked him who his extended arm was on the field.

Enrique paused artfully, as if he really, really needed to think, then said, "Ferran Torres," sending the rationale for the surprising answer right after.

"Because if I don't, my daughter will cut me a head."

Boom, that was a sentence that attracted attention from several aspects.

Of course, Torres, a 22-year-old attacker who commutes between the field and the bench at FC Barcelona, ​​is not the new fixture in the selection.

He may not even be in the starting lineup in the opening game on Wednesday against Costa Rica (5 p.m. CET in the FAZ live ticker for the World Cup on ARD and Magenta TV).

And of course the coach doesn't have to fear any in-house reprisals, the Enrique family is generally considered to be harmonious.

It was interesting, however, that Spain's top football teacher made his daughter's relationship with a player public, which was certainly not entirely free of conflict potential, at a time when at least the whole nation was watching him or listening to his explanations.

Another point in time, before an insignificant friendly match, would have been just as conceivable.

There were plenty of opportunities for this, the young couple has been in a relationship for more than a year.

Enrique's new methods

But it's hard to believe that Enrique, this man driven by ambition and meticulousness, just gave it away.

It is much more likely that all the theatre, the self-portrayal as a hip social media user, the easygoing sayings and the supposed change of type follow a sophisticated plan.

Enrique wants to get all the attention.

Or better: keep them away from the team.

That only makes sense because his selection is the second youngest on average after the USA.

Guys, some of whom would still be eligible to play for junior teams, like midfielders Pedri and Gavi or striker Ansu Fati.

None of them are older than 20 years.

With all the youthfulness, there is no need for additional external pressure.

But that is guaranteed by Spain's press landscape.

The expectations are high, despite the not easy preliminary round group with Costa Rica, Germany and Japan as opponents.

Not to mention the internal expectations.

"A World Cup can mean a turning point," says Ferran Torres.

He only knows that from hearsay, as for many of his team-mates, the World Cup in Qatar is his first.

On the other hand, Luis Enrique is the one who knows what it's like at a tournament like this.

As a player, he regularly failed early on with the Selección.

As soon as he got home, he got all the malice.

A year ago, then as coach, he led Spain to the semi-finals of the European Championship, where they were unlucky to lose to eventual winners Italy on penalties.

The good performance was considered a surprise, but surprises also arouse desire.

Suddenly quite a few Spain are among the extended favorites again, the mix of many talents and experienced forces such as midfielders Koke and Sergio Busquets is considered promising.

From Enrique's point of view, however, an annoying evil.

It can only be helpful to distract from the sporty.

A year ago, Enrique showed how well he understands this discipline.

He skilfully constructed side scenes that triggered an “us-versus-the-rest-of-the-world” feeling among his players.

He accepted the fact that he had to play the incorrigible stubborn head.

He was only too happy to be criticized by the influential capital city press from Madrid for not taking a player from champions Real with him.

This is no longer possible.

Real are represented again, albeit not in large numbers, by Dani Carvajal and Marco Asensio.

The coach was also fond of verbal fire when it came to defending individuals like the initially hapless striker Alvaro Morata or goalkeeper Unai Simon.

The team thanked him with good results.

Luis Enrique has maintained his strategy ever since.

Only the methods are different in Qatar.