In the current FC Barcelona team, there is a high degree of involvement of players from La Masia, with the likes of Lamine Yamal, Pau Cubarsi, Gavi, and Balde all claimants for a spot in the starting lineup when fully fit. In fact, as previously reported, these players helped make Barcelona the club with the highest-valued U-21 players.
However, while these players are playing an important role in the first team, they are still some way off from Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona team, which dominated Europe with a core of players coming from La Masia, with legendary players like Puyol, Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, and Messi all playing together.
The midfielder Andres Iniesta was one of the most important parts of that team and remains one of the most beloved players in the club’s history. Even several years after leaving Barcelona, he remains abreast of the developments taking place at his former club.
Recently, the midfielder talked to Mundo Deportivo and gave his opinion on several topics related to Barcelona. One of the questions put to him was about Lamine Yamal, who has impressed Iniesta, along with the rest of the world with his last year. The former Barcelona midfielder disclosed what Yamal needs to do going forward:
“It’s something unnatural, but these are exceptions that emerge; he’s one of those players with extraordinary talent. He’s just starting out. What he needs now is to keep learning and improving and to have consistency. He’s 16 years old, not 23.”
The Barcelona legend also praised one of the Catalan club’s targets, Nico Williams: “He’s young, but it’s his performance that makes some of the biggest clubs interested in him.”
Iniesta also shared his sadness when he was questioned about his feelings on Xavi’s dismissal:
“From the outside, and without wanting to say too much, when things aren’t going well, you suffer. And if there’s a former teammate and friend involved, you suffer even more. I hope Barça finds continuity and strength to compete for everything. It’s hard to say more because I’m not there.”
The midfielder agreed that Real Madrid have strengthened their team a lot, but still advised Barcelona not to concern themselves too much about their rivals:
“The team that Madrid has and what they’ve been doing lately gives them security and confidence, but keeping an eye on Madrid doesn’t help. Those at Barça will try to bring in the best players to grow.”
Talking about his future, Andres Iniesta shared that he was looking forward to returning to Barcelona, and was thinking about starting a career in coaching after hanging up his boots:
“Obviously, I’d love to return, but I don’t know when that will be… My next step after football would be coaching, and we’ll see if it works out. It’s about finding your place off the field. I don’t know, maybe in two years I’ll have a clearer idea, but for now, I don’t know.”
