The Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta has said that he owes a lot to his teammates for the accolade that he has received as the best player last season. UEFA recently voted the Barcelona midfielder as the best player from last season, as he contributed immensely to the Spanish national team on their way to the Euro 2012 victory. Even though Barcelona may not have won major titles last season, Andres Iniesta was one of the best players in the team. His performances have not gone unnoticed after he managed to beat the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to the title of being the best player in Europe.
After receiving the award, the 28-year-old has said that he is extremely happy to receive such an accolade, but has said that it would not have been possible without the presence of some of the wonderful teammates. Even though Iniesta has been extremely influential in the Barcelona team for a number of years now, this is actually the first major award he has received. It is partly due to the extraordinary brilliance of Lionel Messi that other players within the Barcelona team have been overshadowed up until now.
“It is another moment to remember. The fans have seen me grow here for a long time and I have a very special affection for them. The key was to take the game. We could have won more comfortably, above all in the first half. We are pleased because we still have the advantage. When you have the chances you have to take them because if not, you will suffer,” said the midfielder ahead of the World Cup qualification campaign with Spain. Iniesta has played a major role in helping Barcelona start of the new season with three straight victories, which also includes the latest 1-0 win over Valencia.
Andres Iniesta has said that David Villa is an asset for Barcelona and it is wonderful to know that he has recovered from his injury completely. David Villa has been declared fit by the doctors of Barcelona and he would make a comeback in the team after remaining out for 8 months. There have been reports that Villa would play in the pre season match against Manchester United. Villa had undergone a severe injury while playing in a match of the Club World cup against Al Sadd in the last season. He wasn’t able to feature again for Barcelona in the remaining part of the last season. He also didn’t manage to play for the Spanish team in the Euro Cup. Villa’s absence affected Barcelona’s performance and the team failed to win the UEFA Champions League.
Iniesta said that Villa is one of the best strikers in the world at the moment. He has done wonders in the past and his presence would make a big difference in the upcoming season. As per Iniesta, Villa is a great player and he would not take much time to get into his groove. On being asked about his previous coach, Josep Guardiola, Iniesta said that he was a magical coach. He had that unique ability of bringing the best out of the players. Guardiola had resigned from his post a few months ago. Under his guidance, Barcelona performed amazingly well and won 14 titles. He is considered as one of the best managers that Barcelona has ever had. After the departure of Guardiola, Tito Vilanova has been appointed as the new manager of Barcelona.
On being asked about the new manager of the club, Iniesta said that the players are quite familiar with the working style of Vilanova as he has been working as Guardiola’s assistant. So, it would not be hard for Vilanova to settle in the manager’s role.
Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta has said that he is extremely confident that the future of the club will be as bright as it is right now. Iniesta has said that one of the reasons that he predicts bright future for Barcelona is due to the current crop of youngsters at the academy. The Barcelona academy has always been well known for producing excellent talent. However, the age of Iniesta and Lionel Messi has proved to be a sensational one indeed. Even after all the success they have achieved in the last four seasons, a large part of the first team of Barcelona is comprised of the players from the youth system.
The new Barcelona manager Tito Vilanova also looks like a manager who will stand by this policy of looking towards the youth academy first before entering into the transfer market. Iniesta was once a product of the same the Barcelona youth academy alongside the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Lionel Messi. He was the player of the tournament at the Euro 2012, and is one of the favourites to lift the FIFA Ballon d’Or award this season. If Iniesta wins this award, then it would mean that a Barcelona youth teams player has won the award in four consecutive seasons.
“The club is guaranteed its future in different positions. The most important thing for the younger players is for them to feel comfortable with the senior players. The players coming up should feel happy that they are joining a group of players who were once in the same situation that they are in now. What matters most is that you have to be confident in yourself, know that you are going to have to get through some difficult situations where you’ll need to have faith in what you can do,” said Iniesta.
Spain manager Vicente del Bosque has claimed that Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta is one of the key members of the squad at the Euro 2012. Andres Iniesta has enjoyed a lot of success in the last four seasons with both club and country.
He has largely responsible for the success past, but this has not been one of his best seasons for Barcelona, with Cesc Fabregas chosen ahead of him on many occasions. Despite this, Vicente del Bosque has claimed that Iniesta is crucial to the success of Spain at the Euro 2012. Spain will be looking to win their third consecutive major tournament, which has not been achieved before.
No national team has managed to retain the European Championship, but Spain come into the tournament as one of the favourites. A number of the players who were responsible for the remarkable victory in Euro 2008 still remain in the squad. Iniesta has won every major possible title for both club and country, but he still remains hungry to wins more titles according to Vicente del Bosque. The 28-year-old midfielder is possibly at the peak of his career according to the former Real Madrid manager. He will be without the likes of Barcelona striker David Villa and defender Carlos Puyol at the tournament, but thankfully has the likes of Fernando Torres and Llorente at his disposal instead.
“He [Iniesta] is in fine shape and will be decisive in the six matches we hope to play here. He is enjoying his football, and the doubts we had about his fitness two years ago are absent this year. Andres is a player who has never liked the attention that comes with being called a leader, but he is certainly a leader on the field. His way of playing, his way of being makes him that,” said Del Bosque. Iniesta has also said that he is enjoying his football right now and wants to win the Euro 2012.