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Tag: Andres Iniesta

  • Spain, Barca  legend Iniesta retires at 40

    Spain, Barca  legend Iniesta retires at 40

    Former Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta, who won two European Championships and the 2010 World Cup with an all-conquering Spain team, announced his retirement from football on Tuesday at the age of 40.

     “Being on the pitch is over,” a visibly emotional Iniesta told reporters at a news conference in Barcelona while reflecting on a professional career that began with the Catalan giants in 2002.

     “I can’t stay away from football, it’s my life and will continue to be my life. Now I need to continue educating myself, I’m in the process of doing my coaching diploma and that’s the next step.”

     “I will try to come back and do a great job. However it won’t be running after the ball, but from another place,” he added.

    Iniesta came up through Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy and made his first-team debut aged just 18, becoming a mainstay in the midfield before his departure 16 years later after 674 appearances.

    Read Also: NFF President promises 2025 AFCON title, World Cup 26  ticket

    He won nine La Liga titles and the Champions League four times with Barcelona, also lifting six Copas del Rey in a haul of 32 trophies during his time at Camp Nou.

    Iniesta formed a devastating midfield with Xavi Hernandez and Sergio Busquets, becoming the standard-bearers of the “tiki-taka” style of football that catapulted both club and country to new heights.

    He played alongside the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar, Samuel Eto’o and Luis Suarez for Barcelona, who captured the treble in 2009 under Pep Guardiola and again six years later with Luis Enrique in charge.

    Messi paid tribute to Iniesta on social media and called him “one of the most magical team-mates”, while Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said he had given “society an example of what a professional athlete is”.

    His greatest moment came in the 2010 World Cup final in Johannesburg when he scored the winning goal for Spain against the Netherlands in extra time.

    He won 131 caps for Spain before calling time on his international career after the 2018 World Cup.

    After leaving Barcelona in 2018, Iniesta spent five years with Japanese club Vissel Kobe before playing one final season with Emirates of the UAE.

     “I’d like to return to Barca at some point. Not just to say it, but because those who had so much influence, in one way or another, have to be there,” said Iniesta.

     “When I can do what I did as a player in another role at the club… I’d be delighted.”

    Barcelona praised the retiring Iniesta in a post on the club’s X account.

    “Iniesta, your football will live on forever.”

  • Expect no less than before at Russia 2018 as quarter-finals get underway

    The 2018 FIFA World Cup enters the quarter-finals stage on Friday, with the France versus Uruguay fixture at Nizhny Novgorod kicking off a two-day line-up of four potentially-explosive matches.

    The quarter-finals have come with the usual expectations and surprise element of any tournament of this nature, yet they have not come without a trace of the unexpected.

    The first round/group phase did not do so much to shock us, other than see off title-holders Germany, world number 10 Poland and the five African sides.

    However, the Round of 16 has lived up to expectations, not just with the exit of 2010 champions Spain, two-times champions Argentina and Portugal, but the teams’ star players.

    Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero, Andres Iniesta, Isco, Diego Costa, Angel Di Maria,Gonzalo Higuain, Ricardo Quaresma, Sergio Ramos and Javier Mascherano are now watching the competition from their homes.

    They joined the likes of Tony Kroos, Thomas Muller, Mikel Obi, Victor Moses, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Manuel Neuer and Robert Lewandowski who had been on the sidelines pretty much earlier.

    Their situation, very much unfavoured, is what the likes of Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani, as well as Paul Pogba, Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappe will now try to avoid.

    France with their array of megastars such as Pogba, Mbappe, Griezmann, Olivier Giroud and N’Golo Kante will be wary of what Suarez and Cavani can do upfront.

    But the Uruguayan defence line should worry them much more, with the Atletico Madrid defensive pair of Diego Godin and Jose Gimenez at the centre of affairs.

    Read Also: World Cup: Germany arrive home to angry supporters

    Later on Friday, Belgium who made an incredible comeback from two goals down to win 3-2 will face Brazil at Kazan and knowing that a confrontation with Brazil or Belgium awaits.

    Brazil should rather be wary of Belgium, with Eden Hazard and Romelo Lukaku, have gone 23 games unbeaten and have the best record at this tournament so far.

    They have won all their matches so far, scoring 12 and conceding four goals, but the grittiness which saw them through against Japan is something Brazil will need much of.

    Brazil have struggled to survive against Switzerland, Costa Rica and Serbia, in spite of Neymar, Willian, Philippe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino, Casemiro, Gabriel Jesus and Marcelo not looking out of form.

    However, the fact that they have not conceded again since the only goal against Switzerland in their opening match is something Belgium will have to think a lot about.

    England have been thinking so much that they now have a good chance of another World Cup win since 1966, with the tournament draw being good to them.

    They do not to have to face the likes of France, Uruguay, Brazil or Belgium until July 15, and they feel Sweden may not be too much headache.

    But when they face off on Saturday in Samara, they will have to contend with a side which has shown so much resilience, even in the absence of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

    They beat The Netherlands and Italy in qualifying for Russia, made life difficult for Germany and beat South Korea and Mexico in Russia, and eliminated Switzerland in the Round of 16.

    Usually a quiet side, Sweden can bring down England if they keep under check Harry Kane and Jesse Lingard, as well as likely substitutes Marcus Rashford and Jamie Vardy.

    The good thing for the Swedes is that, in spite of Kane’s leading goalscorer status, England do not have what they do not have, and this makes the game balanced.

    Russia have not disappointed so far, and it is a good preview for them as they head to Fisht Stadium in Sochi to host Croatia on Saturday.

    It is a likely quiet and not-extraordinary game, with Russia being the lowest FIFA-ranked team at the tournament.

    While Russian hopes have risen since the penalty kicks shootout defeat of Spain, it may just serve the hosts well not to count their chickens b efore they are hatched.

    Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic have provided the needed midfield inspiration, while Mario Mandzukic and Ivan Perisic have spearheaded offensive runs which have produced not goals but team game stability.

    The Croats are aware of their capability and Modric, while speaking at their pre-match press conference on Wednesday, said team compatibility is a weapon they would use to great effect.

    “We know it is going to be tough against Russia, especially as they are the hosts, but we know ourselves and what we can do. We will do it as expected,’’ he said.

    However, will they be able to reenact the performance that led them to the 1998 semi-finals in France, having to play against a team and its expectant nation of 144 million?

    It is however Russia’s best World Cup run since the 1966 semi-finals appearance, and they will want to go further than this quarter-finals stage not just because they are the hosts.

    They have shown good strength of character with the way they overcame Spain, and swung their compatriots who never believed in them before behind them.

    While they can shock the Croats, and which can happen, it may just be one other shock in a tournament that is still capable of bringing up more shocks.

    NAN

  • Andres Iniesta unveiled by Vissel Kobe in Japan

     

    Former Barcelona ace Andres Iniesta was unveiled Saturday in as Vissel Kobe player in Japan in front of a large crowd.

    The Spanish playmaker came out of the tunnel at the club’s Noevir Stadium to smoke machines and walked along a red carpet while waving to supporters.

    In his full kit, including wearing No 8 as he did at Barcelona, Iniesta then performed keepy-uppies for the watching crowd and media

    After juggling the ball with ease, Iniesta kicked footballs into the stand as fans waved flags and sang.

    ‘This is a big challenge for me,’ Iniesta told some 4,000 fans through an interpreter two days after signing his contract.

    ‘I aim to contribute to the team as much as possible.

    ‘I think I should pursue the best objectives in both football and my life,’ he added, saying he wants Vissel to win the league and ‘if possible, conquer Asia’.

    Iniesta appeared before a packed press conference in Tokyo on Thursday along with Kobe’s billionaire owner Hiroshi Mikitani when his move from the La Liga giants was confirmed.

    He had said he would probably retire from international football after the World Cup in Russia.

    The 34-year-old scored the winning goal for Spain in the 2010 World Cup final. He also was a key part of two European Championship triumphs in 2008 and 2012.

    He announced last month he would leave Barcelona after 16 seasons. His last match for them was on Sunday against Real Sociedad at the Nou Camp.

    His new J-League team are sixth after 15 games and signed Lukas Podolski last year, but the German striker is out until the end of June with an injured calf. Iniesta who began his sojourn at the Nou Camp with the club’s team B in 2001 joined the senior team a year later making 442 appearances for the side and scoring 35 goals in the bargain.

    The highly experienced midfielder who has been named in Spain’s 23 man squad for the World cup in Russia, will be hoping to ginger the side to attempt once more to lay hands on the World cup trophy which they won in 2010 in South Africa.

  • Nostalgic Iniesta leaves Barca after 22 years

     

    It was tearful moment for Spain International and Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta on Friday as he announced he was leaving the club after 22 years.  He however underlined that he will not be moving to any other club in Europe.

    ‘We arrived 25 years ago in our family car,’ he said of his trip to Barcelona’s La Masia youth academy with his parents and grandparents for a trial at the club.

    ‘Now they are here with me as I say goodbye. That journey was emotional but it was also terrible because then I ended up here on my own and I was only 12 years old! But evidently it was worth it.’

    There were tears as he thanked his team-mates who packed the press room to watch him say goodbye. Only Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez of the first team regulars were absent. It was when he mentioned his team-mates that the tears first began to well up in his eyes.

    There was no confirmation of his move to China at the end of the season but he did confirm that he would not be opting for a Premier League swansong despite interest from Manchester City and his former manager Pep Guardiola.

    He said: ‘All the options that are not in Europe are possible. But in Europe, no, because I have always said that I will not play against Barcelona.’

    Iniesta was asked about France Football’s recent admission that they probably owed him a Ballon d’Or. He made it clear the ball on the pitch was all that mattered to him.

    He said: ‘There was no apology necessary. Everyone likes personal prizes but it was never that important for me.

    ‘I learned, when I first arrived here, that there is a ball and it is very important to take care of it.’

    Asked about Barcelona’s future without him, he said he believed they could continue winning. And joked that he would return in three years to play again.

    Iniesta’s press conference was watched by his team-mates on Friday, but Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez were both missing.

    The Argentine has a history of avoiding emotional public goodbyes, having famously skipped Pep Guardiola’s back in April, 2012.

  • Iniesta ‘ll not be made welcome at Stamford Bridge

    Iniesta ‘ll not be made welcome at Stamford Bridge

     

    Cesar Azpilicueta has warned Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta to expect a hostile reception from the Chelsea fans at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.

    Iniesta stunned Blues supporters with a sublime stoppage-time strike to earn a 1-1 draw in the second leg of their 2008-09 Champions League semi-final, sending 10-man Barca through to the final on away goals.

    It was a hammer blow for Chelsea, who saw multiple penalty claims turned down by referee Tom Henning Ovrebo in an outcome that still rankles with the club’s faithful.

    Iniesta last week said it will be “special” to return to Stamford Bridge, but Azpilicueta thinks it is unlikely he will be made to feel welcome.

    “I remember that I was in Osasuna when he scored that goal to take Barcelona to the final in Rome,” the versatile defender told AS.

    “That changed his history so much and I think the Chelsea fans still feel that in their hearts.

    “I think Andres continues to generate nightmares and I do not think we will get a good reception.”

    With Chelsea 19 points adrift of Premier League leaders Manchester City, the Champions League and FA Cup represent the Blues’ only remaining chances of ending the season with some silverware.

    “I can tell you that we are very excited to get to the quarter-finals, although it will not be easy,” said Azpilicueta.

    “It’s always interesting to play against a team that has many of the best players in the world. Barca play well, they know what to do at all times and the challenge is exciting.”

    On what Chelsea need to do to stop Lionel Messi making the difference, he added: “By playing the game of our dreams and being together. There is no other way. He is a different player from the rest.”

  • Iniesta may walk away as Tianjin upgrade offer

    Iniesta may walk away as Tianjin upgrade offer

     

    Andres Iniesta looks increasingly likely to walk away from Barcelona at the end of the season after a glorious career spanning 15 years and producing 30 trophies.

    China Super League club Tianjin Quanjian have stepped up their interest and with the arrival of Philippe Coutinho,

    Iniesta, who will be 34 this May, sees this season as a good time to leave.

    He has always maintained that he would find it impossible to play against the team he joined as a 12-year-old so the options of Qatar, the MLS and China have always been the most likely and China has emerged as his favoured destination.

    Barcelona paper Diario Sport claimed on Friday that Tianjin Quanjian have made the player a £31million-a-season offer.

    Iniesta signed a ‘contract-for-life’ last year at the Camp Nou but it was a non-binding deal that merely laid out plan for the player and the club to sit down and decide the future at the end of every season.

    Sport claims Iniesta will make his final decision before this summer’s World Cup. With Barcelona still on for a treble and

    Spain one of the favourites for the tournament in Russia the midfielder could sign off in extraordinary fashion.

     

    If Iniesta moves on, Coutinho will finally get a settled birth in the team having been moved from position to position since he joined.

    But Barcelona are also keen on another player who has been likened to Iniesta. Gremio midfielder Arthur looks set to sign at the end of this season although the 21-year-old might delay his arrival until 2019.

  • Barca’s Dembele suffers another hamstring injury

    Barca’s Dembele suffers another hamstring injury

    Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembele has suffered another hamstring injury and will be out of action for between three and four weeks, the La Liga leaders said on Monday.

    The French winger, signed last year from Borussia Dortmund for a fee which could rise to 147 million euros, suffered a hamstring tear in September that kept him out until January.

    Dembele featured in four games after returning, starting one, before suffering a new problem in the 4-2 win over Real Sociedad on Sunday.

    “Tests have confirmed that the player has suffered a hamstring injury of the semitendinosus muscle that does not affect the area operated on earlier in the season,” Barcelona said in a statement.

    Dembele will miss King’s Cup and La Liga matches, but should return before the Champions League last-16 clash against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Feb. 20.

    Captain Andres Iniesta, who was on the bench against Real Sociedad, also has a problem in his right calf and is a doubt for the King’s Cup match at Espanyol on Wednesday.

    NAN

  • Who succeeds Clasico maestro Iniesta?

    Who succeeds Clasico maestro Iniesta?

     

    In a matter of hours, it will be yet another El Clásico, the usual clash between perennial rivals Real Madrid and F. C Barcelona known to arrest massive attention across the globe. One man that has made so much impact in that ritual is Andres Iniesta.

    Iniesta didn’t manage an hour on his comeback game against Deportivo La Coruna, but it was 56 minutes featuring some of the finest midfield play you are likely to see.

    The Barcelona captain, who missed the win over Villarreal, played a brilliant pass to help his side to their first goal in the 4-0 win and created chances for Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba during his impressive outing.

    He was substituted to a standing ovation – hardly a rarity at home, but something he has also received at the hands of Juventus and Valencia fans in away matches this season, not to mention the Clasico at the Santiago Bernabeu in 2016. As Catalan daily Sport wrote after the Depor match: “When he’s on the pitch, the sun shines at Camp Nou”.

    These days, though, that sun appears to be setting. Iniesta has only managed a full 90 minutes once this season, his game-time carefully managed by head coach Ernesto Valverde. Even the applause from the fans has the air of a curtain call about it.

    At 33, Iniesta’s time at the top is beginning to draw to an end, which is bad news for fans of Barca and Spain and spectators of the Clasico. The diminutive maestro often reserves his best performances for those meetings with Real Madrid.

    With that in mind, there is an opportunity emerging for someone else to seize the limelight as the Clasico’s creator-in-chief, as well as become the fulcrum of Spain’s marvelous midfield. Below are the credentials of three players likely to step into iniesta’s big shoes;

    Carles Alena

    Barca directors would be delighted to see another midfield star progress from La Masia and Carles Alena is the best placed to break into Ernesto Valverde’s set-up in the long term.

    The 19-year-old has only managed six senior appearances for the club but there is real optimism about his potential, and he could be used more regularly from 2018 onwards as the fixtures pile up.

    Alena is arguably a less attack-minded player than Iniesta, but aptitude with the ball and his propensity to score the odd long-range belter mark him out as a solid candidate to succeed the captain.

    A Spain youth international, Alena signed a new contract in June that contains a €75million release clause, which goes some way to highlighting just what Barca think of his talents.

    Gerard Deulofeu

    Although much more of an orthodox winger than a midfielder, Deulofeu boasts the kind of creative eye that Barca will sorely need once Iniesta retires.

    He has struggled to really make his mark on the team since returning to Camp Nou in the close-season but, at the age of just 23, he already has a wealth of experience in the Premier League, Serie A and LaLiga.

    Iniesta was often deployed on the left of the attack during the Pep Guardiola era and Deulofeu could replicate that impact in the same position, especially now Lionel Messi has been moved back into a deeper number 10 role alongside him.

    A big performance against Madrid would go a long way towards winning over any uncertain fans as to his ability.

    Denis Suarez

    The man most often described as the next Iniesta – a tag that’s never going to be easy to live with – Suarez is still ideally placed to take up his captain’s mantle.

    The 23-year-old has played out wide and as an attacking midfielder this season, plundering three goals and six assists from only seven starts in all competitions.

    Suarez made his senior Spain debut last year and will be pushing for a spot at the World Cup, despite being yet to appear under Julen Lopetegui and with some serious competition for the midfield places.

    If he can find consistent form in the second half of the season, his place for club and country ahead, perhaps, of Iniesta could be solidified.

  • It’s Barca for life for Andres Iniesta!

    It’s Barca for life for Andres Iniesta!

     

    Andres Iniesta has signed a “lifetime contract” with Barcelona, the club has announced.

    Barcelona said the 33-year-old midfielder had penned a deal which will keep him at the Nou Camp for the rest of his career, although did not specify exactly how many years it would run.

    A club statement read: “Andres Iniesta signed a lifetime contract with FC Barcelona on Friday, in a deal that will keep him at the club for the rest of his career.”

    Barcelona are odds-on at 8/13 with Sky Bet to win the LaLiga title this season and 6/1 third-favourites in the outright Champions League prices.

    Iniesta has made 639 appearances for Barcelona since making his debut 15 years ago, second only to his former team-mate Xavi in the list of the club’s all-time appearance makers.

    He has been at the club since 1996, having joined their famed youth set-up at La Masia at the age of 12.

    The Spain international has won eight LaLiga titles and four Champions League crowns with the Catalan giants and has captained the side since 2015.

    Iniesta burst on to the international scene in 2001, helping Spain win the UEFA European Under-16 Championship. After representing his country at the 2001 FIFA U-17 World Championship held in Trinidad and Tobago, he was in the squad that claimed the UEFA European Under-19 Championship the following year. From then, he became a regular choice for youth coach Juan Santisteban. In 2003, he was part of the side that reached the FIFA World Youth Championship final in the United Arab Emirates, and was named in the FIFA all-star team. During his spell with the Spain U21 side, Iniesta was named captain on several occasions.

    Iniesta was called up to represent the senior Spain squad at the 2006 FIFA World Cup on 15 May 2006, much to the surprise of many. He won his first cap for La Furia Roja when he was brought on at half-time in a friendly against Russia on 27 May. His first goal followed in a friendly against England on 7 February 2007. His long-range effort, hitting the underside of the crossbar on the way in, gave Spain the lead on 63 minutes. Iniesta played a pivotal part in Spain’s qualification for UEFA Euro 2008 by scoring goals against Sweden.

  • Iniesta linked with shock €70m exit from Nou camp

    Iniesta linked with shock €70m exit from Nou camp

     

    Inter have reportedly enquired about the availability of Barcelona icon Andres Iniesta at a meeting between officials from the two clubs.

    The Spaniard is a legend at the Nou Camp having won countless trophies and earned so many individual accolades over the years. However, at 33, he can’t go on forever and has started to see his presence in the starting line-up begin to dwindle.

    That process will only continue moving forward as Barca need to bring through replacements, and that in turn seemingly has led to talk of a possible exit. La Gazzetta dello Sport report that Inter sporting director Piero Ausilio was at a dinner meeting with Barcelona counterpart Ariedo Braida on Monday evening, and Iniesta’s name was brought up.

    His current contract expires in 2018, and while there was also an enquiry as to the availability of Aleix Vidal, it will be the possibility of Iniesta moving to Italy which will garner the most attention.

    It would be a huge shock to see the veteran midfielder play for any other club than Barca, but at this stage of his career, it could be the most sensible option on the table in terms of being able to play regularly.

    Meanwhile, Mundo Deportivo report that Barcelona have put in place a limit of €70m in their pursuit of Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Marco Verratti.

    Despite there being various stumbling blocks in this deal, namely PSG don’t want to sell and if they do, they will demand something close to €100m, it seems as though Barca are going to stick to their guns and not overpay.

    How much of that is down to choice or financial restrictions is unclear, but although the Italian international is considered a pivotal part of new boss Ernesto Valverde’s plans moving forward, the club won’t bow to crazy demands and will hope that PSG will consider their maximum €70m offer.