Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta has been struggling to make a telling impact in the final third for the last 12 months, with no goal or assist to his name in the Spanish La Liga since this exact day last year. It’s a shock and somewhat of a worry that the Spanish international has been below par in the one area he used to excel, and he recently admitted that his numbers haven’t been good enough.
“My stats haven’t been good this season, far from it, but I’ve never looked at my game purely in terms of statistics. Even so, I’m still happy with what I’ve done even if things sometimes don’t go as planned. I’m my biggest critic so nobody needs to point anything out to me,” he said.
Iniesta was never a prolific scorer, nor was he among the best assisters in the world, but he would rarely give away the ball, and instead helped his side to control the game in the middle of the park. When he did create chances, it often led to a goal due to his high quality of passing, let alone the abilities of the forwards he’s giving the ball to. He previously admitted struggling to perform alongside Xavi in the midfield this season, and it could be one of many factors leading to Iniesta’s demise.
“Sometimes I get the feeling that it seems we can’t play together, but it is always a privilege to be by his side because not only does he make your job easier, but he also makes the team work better. Sometimes, as with all players, things don’t work out. We have been together for a long time now.”
But to have gone a year without scoring or assisting a goal in the division will be hard for him to get over. Iniesta’s strengths are with ball retention, but he always popped up with goals over the course of a season, so it seems odd that this season he’s struggled. Many are suggesting a positional shift is the real reason, with the 30-year-old operating in a deeper role under new manager Luis Enrique, but even Xavi would contribute in front of goal on the odd occasion, and he’s shown less threat to score than Iniesta.
So should the long-serving Barcelona man be worried? Supporters will be arguing that his best days are behind him, with Pep Guardiola’s era at the club getting the utmost best from the 30-year-old. Such days are in the past, however, but how can the midfielder turn his poor form around?
