JUST IN: 60,000 Celtics fans gave Andres Iniesta a standing ovation.
JUST IN: 60,000 Celtics fans gave Andres Iniesta a standing ovation.
On Tuesday, October 8, the renowned former Barcelona player and
Spain international icon will formally hang up his boots in honor of the number he wore on the back of his shirt during his incredible trophy-filled career,
in which he was always a superstar.
After spending five years in Japan with Vissel Kobe,
where he coached current Celtic striker Kyogo Furuhashi and helped him secure a July 2021 transfer to the Hoops, the forty-year-old left United Arab Emirates club Emirates last summer.
No doubt, he also told Kyogo about the incredible atmosphere at Celtic Park.
With an incredible 35 major championships won between
2005 and 2023—including four Champions Leagues,
one World Cup, two European Championships, and nine La Liga titles—Iniesta was a constant fixture on Barcelona News.
Alongside Xavi and Sergio Busquets at Barcelona,
Andres Iniesta scored the game-winning goal for Spain against
South Africa in the 2010 World Cup final.
This trio of midfielders is widely considered the best in history for their country,
and they all supported Argentine sensation Lionel Messi in the attacking role at Camp Nou.
He played numerous times at Celtic Park for Barcelona,
including that unforgettable November 2012 game in which the injury-plagued Celtic team somehow overcame all the significant odds to defeat the fantastic Barcelona team 2-1,
with goals from Tony Watt and Victor Wanyama for the Celtics. Finally getting the ball past Fraser Forester and into the Celtic goal, Messi scored late in the game.
The 60,000 spectators in the stadium suddenly rose to their feet to celebrate Andres Iniesta,
a renowned football player and a genius who always played the beautiful game so well,
on another occasion when Barcelona was more successful at Celtic Park.
During his remarkable 16-year tenure at Barcelona, Iniesta faced Celtic seven times and was on the winning side seven times, including a 7-0 thumping of the Bhoys in 2016.
That was the season that Celtic were unbeatable at home, winning the Scottish Premiership, Scottish Cup, and League Cup without dropping a game.
For the Hoops, playing Barcelona—where Andres Iniesta was the star—was a very other experience
. Though the Barcelona team was more than capable of doing that to any team, we couldn’t take it personally.
Regarding his personal encounters with Celtic,
Iniesta was ecstatic with the Parkhead team.
“I’ll never forget playing against Celtic, either.
It has one of the nicest atmospheres on the planet.
It was always really intense every time I had the good fortune to perform there.
Playing in the midst of such enormous cacophony was an honor.
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