Messi lauds 'magic' Iniesta as ex-Spain star retires

Lionel Messi has paid tribute to his former Barcelona teammate Andrés Iniesta after the World Cup-winner retired from professional football at the age of 40.

Spain legend Iniesta announced his retirement at a special event in Barcelona on Tuesday, and Messi, another winner of football’s greatest prize, wrote a note to his teammate on Instagram.

“One of the teammates with the most magic and with whom I enjoyed playing the most,” Messi said. “Football will miss you and so will we.”

As a player Iniesta transcended rivalries in Spain, receiving standing ovations at the majority of grounds in the country, and that remained the case as he retired, with Real Madrid and Espanyol both represented at the event through Emilio Butragueño and Joan Capdevila.

Iniesta was visibly emotional at the event, which was attended by around 500 people including family members, former teammates and a delegation from Barça, which included president Joan Laporta, coach Hansi Flick and first-team players Ansu Fati, Gavi, Ronald Araújo and Dani Olmo.

“I never thought this day would arrive,” a teary-eyed Iniesta said.

“I never imagined it. All the tears over the last few days are not tears of sadness, though, but of emotion, of pride.

“They are the tears of that small boy from Fuentealbilla, who dreamed of being a footballer and achieved it through a lot of hard work, sacrifice and never giving up.

“Those are the essential values in my life. I feel proud of the journey and the people that have accompanied me. I feel happy to have lived a dream.”

After looking back over his career, which started at Albacete and took off in Barça, Vissel Kobe, Emirates and the Spanish national team, Iniesta confirmed he now plans to take his coaching badges and would like to return to Barça in some capacity one day.

“I would like to return to Barça at some point in my life,” he added. “I think that people that have had so much experience and influence at this club have to be here, as long as they can contribute.

“I would be delighted to come back if there’s a role I feel I can offer as much in as I did as a player. What type of coach would I be? I don’t know if I will be or not, but that is the intention.”

After joining Barça’s academy aged 12 in 1996, initially living at La Masia, Iniesta went on to make 54 appearances for the club’s B team before breaking into the senior side in 2002.

Iniesta teased his retirement with a video on social media on Monday in which he talked about what football meant to him, before tributes were paid by a number of prominent names including Pep Guardiola, Louis van Gaal and Luis Enrique.

During a storied era for the club, playing alongside the likes of Carles Puyol, Xavi Hernández and Messi, Iniesta helped form the spine of a team that won numerous Champions Leagues and LaLiga titles.

The 2008-2012 period under Guardiola is often referred to as the best spell in the club’s history.

“It will be difficult to repeat those years in terms of titles, because it was brutal,” Iniesta said. “But in football and in life nothing is impossible.

“Will it be very difficult? For sure, but not impossible. We always like to compare things, but what happened in past doesn’t mean what comes next has to be worse.”

He eventually left Barça in 2018 after making almost 700 appearances and winning 32 trophies with the club.

Madrid posted a statement praising Iniesta on Tuesday.

“Real Madrid CF, its president and its Board of Directors wish to express their recognition, admiration and affection for one of the great legends of Spanish and world football,” it said.

“Andrés Iniesta has contributed to the greatness of the sport with his football and his values, beyond the numerous titles he has won during his career.”