At 40, legendary player Iniesta of Barcelona and Spain retires

Andres Iniesta, a former midfield player for Barcelona and Spain, declared his retirement on Tuesday following a spectacular, trophy-filled 24-year career.

The 40-year-old Iniesta led both Barcelona and Spain’s midfield during a run of consistent success in the late 2000s and early 2010s.

“Please allow me to be a little emotional today,” a tearful Iniesta said at a press conference. The player most recently played for Emirates Club in the United Arab Emirates.

“I never imagined that this day would arrive. It never occurred to me. Yes, the tears we have shed recently are tears of pride and emotion. These are not depressing tears.

“They are the tears of that youngster from a small village called Fuentealbilla who dreamed of being a football player and we succeeded in realizing that dream through a lot of sacrifice, hard effort, and never giving up—values that are fundamental to my life. With everyone who has supported me along the way, I am incredibly pleased of this route.”

The technically gifted Iniesta played in 131 games for Spain, where he scored the game’s lone goal in the 2010 World Cup final with a last-second goal that gave his nation the victory against the Netherlands and their first-ever world championship.

In addition, he was instrumental in Spain’s victory in the 2008 European Championship, which broke a 44-year trophy drought. In 2012, as they successfully defended the championship, he was named player of the tournament.

Less than an hour’s drive southeast of Madrid, in the little village of Fuentealbilla, is where Iniesta was born. At the age of twelve, he enrolled in Barcelona’s La Masia junior program and went on to play 674 games for the Spanish national team, captaining them for three seasons.

A year prior to emerging as Spain’s World Cup final hero, Iniesta performed a fantastic job against Chelsea in the Champions League semifinal.

His incredible goal late into stoppage time put Barca in the championship game, and they went on to win it—Pep Guardiola’s first European Cup victory as a coach.

Nine La Liga championships with Barcelona, four Champions League crowns, six Copa del Rey crowns, two UEFA Super Cups, and three FIFA Club World Cups were all won by Iniesta, many of which he shared with Xavi Hernandez, a competitor for the title of greatest Spanish footballer of all time.

“Andres Iniesta, one of my favorite teammates and a very amazing player, you will be missed by both the ball and us. I truly liked our games together! On social media, Lionel Messi, a former teammate at Barcelona, tweeted, “I wish you all the best. You are a phenomenon.”

After finishing second to Messi in the 2010 Ballon d’Or competition, Iniesta ended his incredible tenures at Barcelona and Spain in 2018 and relocated to Japan to play for Vissel Kobe.