"My time at Barcelona was magical and special, the best"

"I achieved my dream that I had since I was 12-years-old. I played hundreds of games, won lots of titles. It was a brutal reward for a lot of work. If I had to define it in only one word it would be magical," Iniesta said in an extensive interview with the newspaper 'Marca'.

Iniesta also spoke in favour of 'Tata' Martino's football, denying that he left the team. "I'm surprised it was like that because to play football you have to run. We players try to limit ourselves to what the coach wants. Tata's era was like this, but not because they changed training or the way to do it, explained the former Fuentealbilla footballer.

He also talked about what it meant for him to wear the captain's armband. "It didn't weigh me down, I liked it. Wearing the Barca's armband and representing so many things is very significant especially for a boy who came to Barca at 12-years-old and ended up being captain," he said.

"It's like writing a story, drawing up a scenario and in the end it comes true. For me, it was something very special and I tried to do it in the best way with respect to my team-mates, the club and the fans", he added in this regard.

A responsibility that Pique now has. "He is one of the team captains at the moment. In the end, within that each one is as it is, there inside the things are spoken, they are done and that's it," he said.

"It's a group that's known each other for a long time. Everyone knows what each one is like and, within that, the key is to follow a line," Iniesta added.

The Spaniard praised Arthur and De Jong, who are reinforcements for Xavi and himself. "They seem two exceptional players, with a lot of weight on the field. They have the idea of the game. They control time, the ball, the situation," he said.

"I'm sure they have a great presence within the team. The point is that all the gear works with Busi, Ivan (Rakitic) and all the people in the middle," Iniesta also said.

But he warned that there will not be a 'new Iniesta'. "There will not be another Iniesta as one player is not the same as another. My idols were Guardiola and Laudrup but I did not end up being like them," he responded.

"I made my own path and I am who I am. Players with these characteristics will make history. Everybody is different. The important thing is that each one of us has the ability to get what we have," Andres Iniesta said, to finish.