Iniesta is considered one of the best midfielders of his generation, with a huge record in his illustrious career. The former Spanish player started at Barca and made over 670 appearances for the Catalan team.
Iniesta has won nine La Liga titles, four Champions League titles and many other trophies. Along with Xavi and Sergio Busquets, Iniesta forms one of the greatest midfield trios of all time.
On the international stage, Iniesta is a two-time EURO champion, and scored the decisive goal to help Spain win the 2010 World Cup. After playing for Vissel Kobe (Japan) and Emirates Club (UAE), Iniesta officially retired in 2024 at the age of 40.
Recently, when asked by TikToker “ofmanny” to choose the 5 greatest players in football, Iniesta surprised many people by not naming Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. Instead, he chose Michael Laudrup, Pep Guardiola, Xavi, David Silva and Santi Cazorla.
Previously, Iniesta revealed that Laudrup was one of his childhood idols, alongside Guardiola.
“Michael Laudrup has been my idol since I was a kid. His technique, his beautiful style of play and the way he attacks from midfield is something I’ve always admired. I tried to play like him since I was a kid. Pep should also be on this list because he’s my idol alongside Laudrup,” Iniesta shared.
When talking about Xavi, Iniesta had many compliments for his former teammate: “I played with Xavi for a long time and watched him a lot on TV. For me, he is the ideal midfielder, someone who can control the game, pass the ball well to important positions and is a real leader. He is truly a perfect midfielder.”
In addition to Iniesta, former player David Silva was also asked to choose his top five players, and he chose Laudrup, Messi, Iniesta, Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Aguero. Meanwhile, former Everton player Tim Cahill had a list of Pele, Diego Maradona, Messi, Ronaldo and Ronaldo Nazario.
