Barcelona’s Andres Iniesta claims that the team was let down by a few tactical mistakes in the 2-1 loss against Real Madrid.
The Catalan club surrendered their 39 match unbeaten record as a result of this defeat. More importantly, it may have just given Madrid belief that they can still win the league title is though they are seven points behind. Coming into the match, Barcelona had a 10 point advantage over their arch rivals. Iniesta played the full 90 minutes against Madrid. This was the second consecutive game in which Barcelona have failed to win in the league.
Atletico have been able to reduce the deficit at the top to just six points while Madrid are a further point behind. Iniesta may no longer be one of the decisive players in front of goal, but he remains a key member of the squad nonetheless. The 31-year-old has scored only one league goal in 21 appearances this season. Despite having featured against Madrid, he is expected to start against Atletico in the Champions League quarter-finals. Against their arch rivals, Barcelona dominated the game in terms of possession. Things look good when they took the lead through Gerard Pique in the second half, but Karim Benzema came up with an equaliser soon. Read more »
Barcelona’s Andres Iniesta has not had such an influential season for his club in comparison to other seasons.
A few years ago Iniesta, Xavi and Messi were the main stars of the Spanish club but things have sustained a dramatic change as Suarez and Neymar have now attracted all the attention and have turned into the central figures at the Camp Nou.
Xavi Hernandez has already signed a contract with the Qatari club Al-Sadd as the Spanish midfielder will be ending his relation with Barcelona at the end of the current season and Andres Iniesta seems to be heading to the out of Barcelona as well.
Iniesta has a contract with Barcelona which extends until 2018 but it’s obvious that he isn’t the same player he used to be some years ago. After having made over 300 appearances for Barcelona, the best days of Iniesta are behind him and the 30 year old midfielder took the chance to give his thanks to the manager who allowed him to make his debut, Louis van Gaal.
Andres Iniesta said: “My debut with the team, it was the most important day of my life. It was a dream come true. These are very good memories. I was nervous but also very grateful to Van Gaal and all the coaches I’ve had before. I was 17 years of age and delighted to be in the first-team, and he gave me that opportunity. I knew that he had always done tremendous work with the young players.’’ Read more »
Barcelona managed to secure a strong footing in the Champions League last 16 tie against Manchester City.
They won the first leg 2-1 at the Etihad stadium, which puts them in a strong position. The advantage could have been even more significant had Lionel Messi converted the penalty awarded in the latter stages of the match. Still, the Catalan club can go into the second leg in front of their own supporters with a lot of confidence. Midfielder Andres Iniesta, though, warns Barcelona against complacency against a team of City’s quality.
The reigning Premier League champions have been suffering from inconsistent form throughout this campaign, but they have produced some brilliant performances nonetheless. They were knocked out of the Champions League at the same stage last season. Barcelona were their opponents back then too and City almost came close to pulling a major shock at the Camp Nou. Iniesta says that the team should be focused from the first whistle. Read more »
Not being able to sign any new players during a transfer window is a huge disadvantage for managers as they aren’t able to strengthen the areas of their respective clubs that have appeared to be most vulnerable and Barcelona’s Luis Enrique is not going to be able to reinforce some of the more weaker sections of his team due to the transfer ban that Barcelona received which will not allow the Spanish club on signing any new performers and it’s going to last the entire year of 2015.
Even with this transfer ban, Andres Iniesta believes that the team has enough depth to continue winning trophies.
Iniesta said that his teammates aren’t even contemplating finishing this season without winning trophies as they are just focused to continue playing despite everything that has and will occur in the ongoing season. Read more »
Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi will be making their return to Celtic Park in the group stages of the Champions league this season after the Spanish giants were drawn in the same group along with Celtic.
This is an extremely tough group for Celtic since they will also have to play against AC Milan and Ajax. Between AC Milan and Barcelona alone, there are 12 Champions league titles and they are formidable opposition to say the least. Despite this, Celtic can draw confidence from the recent performance against Barcelona when they managed to stun the Spanish giants at home. Read more »
Barcelona have been draw against German giants Bayern Munich in the semifinals of the Champions league this season. Midfielder Andres Iniesta has said that it is a thrilling tie and one that he cannot wait to play in. The 28-year-old has said that he expects Bayern Munich to provide a tough competition. Hence, the fans should not be already thinking about an El Clasico in the final of the Champions League this season. Real Madrid will be playing against Borussia Dortmund in the other semi-final. Madrid are the favourites to progress from this tie.
Iniesta has said that it is always nice to be close to a final because it provides the team with an opportunity to win a title. However, they should not be looking too far ahead because Bayern Munich are one of the favourites to win the competition this season. The German club has had a relatively easy passage into the semifinals, but that is partly down to the incredible strength of the team. Many regard Bayern to be the complete team in the Champions League this season.
Iniesta has praised the strength of Bayern by saying that they have strong players across the field, while their bench is also extremely strong as well.
“Man, if I were a fan I would not be so nervous, whilst with the adrenaline it should stop. A final should be exciting, it should be looked at as it is, it is something big to get to play it and there is nothing so nice as to win another title. Today, however, I do not think about that, just of the semi-finals, which will be very difficult. Do we face them with fear? No, unapologetically, full of confidence and trusting that if we do things as we should then we will be in the final, we have our chances,” said Iniesta.
The Spanish club Barcelona face an uphill task in their efforts to qualify for the quarter-finals of the Champions League, as they have suffered a shock 2-0 defeat in the first leg against the Italian club AC Milan. This has left Milan with the requirement of even a drab 0-0 draw to go through into the quarter-final stage of the competition.
Barcelona have been one of the most successful clubs in this competition over the last few years, as they have lifted the trophy two times. Even though they are currently top of the Spanish league by a massive 13 points, they are on the verge of being knocked out of the European competition. Read more »
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.
April 28, 2016 9:51 am | 