Barcelona legend Andrés Iniesta announces retirement

By Melody Zekey

SPANISH midfielder Andrés Iniesta has officially announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 40. He left Barcelona in 2018 after 22 years at the club to which 16 were in first team and six as a youth player. He left with 9 La Liga titles, 6 Copas del Rey, 4 Champions Leagues, 7 Spanish Super Cups, 3 European Super Cups and 3 World Club Cups.
UEFA BEST PLAYER IN EUROPE 2012
FOOTBALLER OF THE YEAR 2009
PLAYER OF THE YEAR 2012
WORLD CUP WINNER 2010 Spain
EUROPEAN CHAMPION 2012 2008

He said, “It was the best place to be to learn the values that have guided me through life. I am grateful to everyone, the teachers, my team-mates… that time impacted my whole life.”

He played alongside the likes of Carles Puyol, Xavi Hernández and Messi,

He also spent five years in Japan and then a year in the UAE.
JAPANESE CHAMPION 2023
JAPANESE CUP WINNER 2019
JAPANESE SUPER CUP WINNER 2020
Iniesta also revealed that after enjoying his career as a player, the fans might get the chance to do so again with him in a coaching role. The blaugrana legend explained that he is still learning, gaining experience and making mistakes with the aim of continuing to enjoy the game of football from the dugout.
Lionel Messi to Andres Iniesta retirement:
“One of the teammates with the most magic and one of those I enjoyed playing with the most. The ball is going to miss you, and so will all of us. I wish you the best always, you’re a phenomenon.”