INIESTA POISED TO LEAVE FOR CHINA AFTER 22 YEARS AT CATALAN CLUB
Andres Iniesta yesterday confirmed he will leave Barca at the end of the season after 22 years associated with the club.
In a press conference attended by members of the first team and the club’s board, Iniesta said he wanted to finish at Barca “feeling useful, feeling important and still winning titles”. Iniesta is expected to continue his career in China but says his next move is yet to be finalised. The 33-year-old reiterated, however, he would never play against Barcelona.
“It’s a very difficult day for me because I’ve been here all my life and to say goodbye to my home and my life here is very hard,” he added
Barcelona need only a point against Deportivo La Coruna tomorrow to confirm a domestic double and win La Liga for the third time in four years.
Iniesta made an emotional exit from the victorious Copa del Rey final last weekend, bleary-eyed as he was substituted in the second half, and it will be a nostalgic occasion again when he hoists his final trophy with the club.
“The love and respect that people have for me is something I feel deep inside,” Iniesta said. “My aim now is to try to add the league to the Cup.”
Close to invincible
It would be Iniesta’s ninth league title won with Barca, 13 years after his first, and his last might yet prove his finest, given Barca also stand five unbeaten games from becoming La Liga’s only ever invincible team.
Real Madrid could yet intervene when the ‘classico’ comes to the Camp Nou next weekend but Deportivo would appear unlikely spoilers, sitting 18th, nine points adrift of Levante with four games left to play.
Some have suggested Clarence Seedorf’s side would even prefer to have their fate settled against Barcelona than at the home of their fiercest rivals Celta Vigo, whom they visit six days later.
“We are going to play to death to win it,” Deportivo striker Adrian Lopez said.
“We know that we face a Barca that are practically champions and I hope they come a little calmer than usual. I hope they have their heads on the World Cup.”
That may prove wishful thinking given Barca arrive on the back of arguably their best performance of the season against Sevilla and are still trying to make a statement following their Champions League Espanyol v Las Palmas (3pm), Real Sociedad v Athletic Bilbao (6.15pm), Real Madrid v Leganes (8.30pm), Villarreal v Celta Vigo (10.45pm)
Andres Iniesta | Barcelona midfielder
Getafe v Girona (2pm), Alaves v Atletico Madrid (6.15pm), Valencia v Eibar (8.30pm), Deportivo La Coruna v Barcelona (10.45pm)
Real Betis v Malaga (11pm) loss to Roma. Liverpool’s emphatic 5-2 win over the Italians on Tuesday has only underlined the carelessness of that defeat, while Real beating Bayern Munich to edge closer to a third consecutive European triumph makes their absence all the more galling.
Adding a 25th league crown to the Copa del Rey would go some way to softening the disappointment.
“We have been pursuing the league since the beginning of the season,” Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde said.