Former Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta-the two-time European Championship winner and 2010 World Cup winner with an all-conquering Spain-retired from football on Tuesday, aged 40 years.
Having come through the famous La Masia academy at Barcelona, Iniesta broke into the first team at just 18, going on to be a mainstay in the midfield before his eventual departure after 674 appearances 16 years later.
He lifted nine La Liga titles and the Champions League crown four times with Barcelona, including six Copas del Rey in a haul of 32 trophies at Camp Nou.
Iniesta formed a fearsome midfield with Xavi Hernandez and Sergio Busquets, who then became the standard-bearers of the “tiki-taka” style of football that catapulted both club and country to new heights.
He shared the pitch for Barcelona with the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar, Samuel Eto’o and Luis Suarez as they won the treble in 2009 under Pep Guardiola and again six years later under Luis Enrique.
His moment of glory finally came during extra time in the 2010 World Cup Final in Johannesburg when he scored a winner for Spain against the Netherlands.
He earned 131 caps for Spain before calling time on his internationally active career following the 2018 World Cup. After leaving Barcelona in 2018, Iniesta spent five years with J-League side Vissel Kobe before joining United Arab Emirates side Emirates on a final hurrah in the game.
