Andrés Iniesta gives blessing to Frenkie de Jong and Arthur

Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images

The Barcelona legend sees something special in the young midfielders

Former Barcelona captain Andrés Iniesta has showered two of his heirs at the Camp Nou with praise in an interview he gave to MARCA. The midfielder spoke glowingly of Frenkie de Jong and Arthur, the two midfielders who now occupy the roles Iniesta and his former teammate Xavi used to occupy.

“I see them as two exceptional players, with a huge amount of influence on the pitch. They understand the philosophy of the game. They control the tempo, the ball, the situation... for sure that they will have a great ascendancy within the team,” Iniesta said.

“The question is how the whole engine room functions with Sergio Busquets and Ivan Rakitić and everyone else in the middle of the pitch,” he added.

Iniesta also professed himself as a fan of Rakitić during that interview, saying it would be a shame to see his former teammate leave Barça.

While he did give his praise to De Jong and Arthur, the current Vissel Kobe player did not pick any player to be the “next Iniesta.”

“There will not be another Iniesta just like there will not be a player who is the same as another,” he said. “My idols were Pep Guardiola and Michael Laudrup, but I never got to become just like them. I made my own path, and I am who I am. The players with those qualities will make history. We are all different. The important thing is that everyone has the capacity to develop what one has.”

Source: barcablaugranes.com