Andrés Iniesta
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| Iniesta | ||
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| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Andrés Iniesta Luján | |
| Date of birth | May 11, 1984 | |
| Place of birth | Fuentealbilla, Albacete, Spain | |
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[1] | |
| Playing position | Midfielder | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | FC Barcelona | |
| Number | 8 | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 2000–2002 2002– |
FC Barcelona B FC Barcelona |
35 (3) 157 (12)[2] |
| National team2 | ||
| 2006– | Spain | 23 (4) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
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Andrés Iniesta Luján (born May 11, 1984 in Fuentealbilla, Albacete) is a Spanish midfielder currently playing for Barcelona.
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[edit] Club career
At the age of 12, Iniesta was spotted by Barça scouts at his local club Albacete Balompié. He was switftly signed and worked his way up the club ranks. Louis van Gaal handed him his debut on 29 October, 2002, a UEFA Champions League game against Club Brugge KV. He appeared eleven times in the league in 2003-04, mostly as a deputy for Camp Nou favourite Ronaldinho, as Barça sealed second place, scoring once.
In the 2004-05 season Iniesta successfully secured a permanent slot in the first team and figured in 37 of 38 league games - more than any other player. He displayed an unselfish attitude by regularly aiding strikers Samuel Eto'o and Ronaldinho but performed poorly in front of goal - denied by the woodwork on several occasions, he found the net just twice.
Iniesta's improvement as a player continued in the 2005-06 and because of the absence of Xavi due to injury, he was given regular starts in midfield. The increased playing time offered to him at the highest level gave him the opportunity to blossom into a superb midfielder. His contribution to the team was praised by Coach Frank Rijkaard. However, his call up to the Spanish squad for the World Cup came as a surprise to football pundits.
On August 22, 2006 Andres lifted the Joan Gamper Trophy as the captain of the team after defeating German side Bayern München 4-0.
His current contract with FC Barcelona ends in June of 2014.[3] On July 19th he was linked with a move to rivals Real Madrid. Reports in newspapers suggested Real was prepared to pay 60 million euros for him [4] which would trigger his release clause. However, he reiterated his desire to remain with Barça by saying "I can’t do anything about it but I’d like to insist once again that I want to stay here. When I say I want to retire in Barça, I say it with all my heart." [5]
[edit] National team
Iniesta burst on to the international scene in 2001, helping Spain win the UEFA European Under-16 Championship, and was in the squad that claimed the UEFA European Under-19 Championship the following year. In 2003 he formed part of the Spanish side that reached the FIFA World Youth Championship final in the United Arab Emirates, and was named in the FIFA all-star team.
He has captained the Spain U21s side on several occasions.
Iniesta's mother used to work as a maid in Hotel Rambla, and his father is a retired lawyer who now handles Iniesta's club career choices. Iniesta has a cousin named Javier Gaston Alberto who is 14 years old and currently plays as a striker for one of the Barcelona juvenile teams and is considered a hot prospect for the future.
He was called up to represent Spain at the World Cup 2006 on May 15 2006. Iniesta won his first cap for Spain when he was brought on at half-time in a friendly against Russia on the 27th of May, 2006.
He scored his first goal for Spain in a friendly against England on February 7 2007. Spain took the lead on 63 minutes when Iniesta thumped home a right-footed shot in off the crossbar from the right-side of the box after David Villa's cross was flicked into his path.
Iniesta played a pivotal part in Spain's qualification for Euro 2008 by scoring goals against the likes of Sweden and by assisting the strikers. Iniesta usually played in the middle of the park, but he was also trusted with roles further up the pitch when Spain was away from home, most notably in the game against Denmark where he was given an unfamiliar left wing position. Despite playing on the left, Iniesta proved that he could succeed by crossing the ball for strikers to score.
[edit] All-Time Club Performance
Stats accurate as of May 17, 2008[6]
| Club | Season | League | Cup[7] | Europe[8] | Club World Cup | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| FC Barcelona | 2002-03 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 2003-04 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 2 | |
| 2004-05 | 37 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 46 | 2 | |
| 2005-06 | 33 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 49 | 1 | |
| 2006-07 | 37 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 56 | 9 | |
| 2007-08 | 31 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 49 | 4 | |
| Career totals | 155 | 12 | 24 | 2 | 45 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 226 | 18 | |
[edit] Trophies
[edit] FC Barcelona
- 2006-07
Supercopa de España - 2005-06
UEFA Champions League - 2005-06 La Liga
- 2005-06 Supercopa de España
- 2004-05 La Liga
[edit] Spain
- UEFA Under-16 Championship winner
- UEFA Under-19 Championship winner
- Finalist with the Spanish team to the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship
[edit] References
- ^ Barcelona site
- ^ ESPN (Last updated: 25 Jun 2007)
- ^ www.footballdatabase.com
- ^ Real Madrid chasing Barcelona midfielder Iniesta
- ^ FCBarcelona.cat
- ^ ESPN Soccernet
- ^ Includes Supercopa de España
- ^ Includes UEFA Supercup
[edit] External links
- Andrés Iniesta FIFA competition record
- Profile on the official club website
- Iniesta at Official FC Barcelona UK Penya
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