Summary
- Andres Iniesta was asked to name his greatest ever midfielders back in 2020.
- Iniesta left out household names including Zinedine Zidane, Steven Gerrard and Paul Scholes from his list.
- The World Cup winner instead chose four former Barcelona players.
Barcelona icon Andres Iniesta left out Zinedine Zidane when discussing the four midfielders he believes are the greatest of all time. The Spaniard, who scored the goal that won his country their only ever World Cup in 2010, is widely considered to be one of the best in his position of all time after his years of success with both the national team and the famous Catalan outfit.
During his career, Iniesta got to play alongside and against some of the very best in the business, with the most prominent of those being Zidane, who is widely regarded as the poster boy of football from the 1990s. However, the Frenchman was brutally snubbed by the recently retired playmaker when he was asked about the topic in 2020.
Speaking on the Daisuke Nasu YouTube channel, per Goal, the then-Vissel Kobe man named four ex-Los Cules stars as his chosen midfielders, including three names he worked alongside in some capacity.
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Michael Laudrup
The Dane was one of Iniesta’s idols growing up
Perhaps the most unexpected name to kick off this list is former Denmark captain Michael Laudrup. The playmaker was one of the best of his generation, winning the Champions League and five Spanish league titles during his storied career. He is also one of Denmark’s greatest ever exports, though he wasn’t a part of their greatest success and one of the sport’s biggest upsets when they won the European Championship in 1992 due to a falling out with manager Richard Moller Nielsen.
The former Swansea City boss also finished fifth in both the 1992 and 1993 Ballon d’Or standings, and Iniesta discussed how he idolised the midfielder during his childhood. As translated by GOAL, Iniesta stated:
“Michael Laudrup is my idol from childhood.His technique and his beautiful play style, the way he attacked as a midfielder. I’ve been trying to be like him since I was a kid.”
Xavi
The duo were two of the most dominant players together in their prime
Given the success these two had together as a partnership, there was never any way that Iniesta wasn’t going to include his former partner-in-crime in the list. While the former Barca number eight was the more advanced midfielder in the team, he was allowed to excel in that role because Xavi was so brilliant at dictating the tempo and keeping the game ticking at the pace he wanted it to.
Speaking about his former teammate, Iniesta said:
“I played with Xavi for a long time and I’ve watched him a lot on television. He is my ideal player because of how he can control games. He has the ability to provide quality passes in the right places and he is also a leader. He really is an ideal midfielder for me.”
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Sergio Busquets
The defensive midfielder was key in allowing Xavi and Iniesta to flourish
As brilliant as Xavi and Iniesta were in their own right, they were nothing without Sergio Busquets sitting behind them. If there was one weak link in the famous duo’s arsenal, it was their physicality and ability to defend. They needed someone covering their backs who could sometimes do the job expected of two holding midfielders, allowing Xavi and Iniesta to focus on the play at the other end of the pitch.
In Busquets, they had their ideal man. While not blessed with amazing mobility, his reading of the game and composure were absolutely second to none. Iniesta himself recognised this, saying of his compatriot:
“Just like Xavi, I played with Sergio Busquets for a long time too, both with Barcelona and in the Spanish national team. He plays a very important role, the supporting midfielder – he can read football matches so well. He’s a good passer but he also creates passing lanes for the centre-backs as well. His role is very important to make the Barcelona system work.”
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Pep Guardiola
The world-class manager was also a standout player in his day
Before he became one of the best managers of all time, Pep Guardiola was at the heart of Barcelona’s midfield, building the foundations that would later make him such a brilliant coach. The Catalan native won everything there was to win at the Camp Nou as a player and had an impact on Iniesta long before he ever had the opportunity to coach him.
“Pep should also be on the list because he was a childhood hero alongside Laudrup,” the four-time Champions League winner said of the man who would eventually guide him through the greatest period of his playing career.
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