Iniesta the only all-rounder

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Football players can be broadly classified as defenders, midfielders or strikers. And, then a talent like Andres Iniesta comes along.
The diminutive Barcelona wizard can play on the right wing, left wing, in the middle and even up front. A complete footballer, Iniesta’s broad range of skillsmade him a household far beyond the villas of Catalunya.
After leading Spain to the European crown two years, the twinkle-toed 26-year-old is now intent of adding the world title to his list of achievements.
However, the most admirable quality about Iniesta is his willingness to switch to whatever role the team and his coach demands of him. A complete team player, Iniesta is never one to hog the limelight. Instead this ball wizard shares all the plaudits with his teammates.
Speaking after inspiring Spain to a 1-0 win over Paraguay, Iniesta gushed about the collective spirit of the team comprising of players from two of world football’s bitter rivals — Real Madrid and FC Barcelona.
“The fact that I’ve been voted man-of-the-match makes me very happy but without my teammates I wouldn’t be able to do anything. If Villa was here he would say that without his temmates he wouldn’t score any goals,” he said.
“The strength of this team is that we fight for each other and that’s what’s helped us gain success,” Iniesta added.
Two years ago, Iniesta and his club mate Xavi Hernandez were the cornerstones of Spain’s stunning European triumph — when they beat Germany 1-0 in the final at Vienna.
The Germans will again stand in their way, as they look to join France as the only team to complete the World Cup-European Championships double.
“We’re in the semis now and we should all feel delighted. Now we start to focus on the match against Germany. We’ve been following them throughout the World Cup, they’ve had a spectacular tournament and they’re going to be on top form,” observed Iniesta.
However, he added that the triumph of two years ago would have no role to play in Wednesday’s semifinal at Durban.
“We’ll be playing Germany again but I don’t think what happened two years ago will have any bearing on the game. They have had a brilliant World Cup so far. It must be a tremendous motivation for them but we too are at the top of our game,” he said.
On his predictions for the match, he said, “We’re keen to progress further, it will be a match between two teams that like to keep ball and I think it will be a great match.”