Captain Iniesta: The Magician of Barcelona

He arrived at La Masía in Barcelona at the age of 12 with a suitcase and a dream. Nights of tears and days of maturity. Andrés not only grew up in Can Barça, he became the ball wizard, the orchestrator of the midfield. The captain Iniesta.

Unbalancing player; space and time, nobody controls them like him, his football cannot be explained, you have to see it to understand it. Throughout his career, he has earned the admiration of friends and strangers. Such is his talent that last October, Barcelona closed his "lifetime" renewal.

At 33 years old, Andrés Iniesta is the only one to be awarded the best player of a World Cup, a European Championship, and a Champions League.

With La Roja, he has won two European Championships and was the main protagonist of the greatest achievement in the history of Spanish football, the World Cup in South Africa.

Now, the captain of Barcelona has a tempting offer to go to Chinese football, but beyond the huge salary (35 million euros), Andrés regained his position in the starting lineup, despite the signing of Philippe Coutinho.

Iniesta has won 27 titles with Barça, being the only player to play in four European competition finals. The enigmatic and iconic player returned to Stamford Bridge to face one of the teams that remembers him best: Chelsea, with whom he drew 1-1. Nine years ago, he qualified his team for the Champions League Final with a magical goal in the 92nd minute against the Blues and will try to continue writing those extraordinary brushstrokes in Barcelona's history.

- An important episode in your life was in the 2010 World Cup, eight years later and with the eve of Russia, do you still dream of that goal?

Knowing that we were eliminated in the group stage of the previous World Cup, I don't dream about that situation. The only thing I dream about is that in Russia the national team can compete well. I feel that we have a great squad to make a great performance, knowing and respecting what a World Cup means. Regardless of whether the opponents in the group have more or less reputation, we must have a lot of respect for everyone.

- What perception do you have of the Mexican national team?

I have the utmost respect for Mexican football. I have had Mexican teammates like Gio and Jonathan dos Santos; I shared important things with Rafa Márquez. Andrés Guardado, who has been in the Spanish League for many years, like Carlos Vela, are players that I hold in high regard because they have a lot of quality and technique, and in the end, I think it is a reflection of what Mexican football is like.

- Migrating to the MLS or the Chinese Super League, even having a good football level, do you think it is a good football decision?

I suppose there will be cases of everything, both Gio and Jonathan are younger than me, I know older players who have gone to play in those leagues, but in the end, each one decides what is best for them. I don't think the MLS or the Chinese League or any other league can seem minor. Those who go to those leagues, with an established name, have the task of performing at a good level due to the interest they generate in the public there. If you don't perform well, people from other countries won't want you there, so it is also a responsibility when you make a leap to those tournaments.

- On the day that the earth shook Mexico, you sent a message on Twitter to encourage us. In addition, you created an initiative to financially support the country, why did you feel compelled to do everything?

When situations like that occur, one understands that there are no borders to help or try to contribute our bit, it was also an initiative that we had with people we know in Mexico and also our winery. We always hoped that that catastrophic situation could be overcome quickly.