da apostebet: Andres Iniesta has had a phenomenal career for both club and country but is not enjoying his latest assignment with Emirates Club.
Iniesta signed for Emirates Club in summerWasn't ready to end his playing careerIs finding life tough at the bottom of the tableWHAT HAPPENED?
da dobrowin: Iniesta signed for United Arab Emirates Pro League side Emirates Club in August after leaving Japanese club Vissel Kobe. The World Cup winner, who will turn 40 in May, has made nine appearances for his new club but is finding life tough at Emirates Club. His side are bottom of the table with just five points and have managed just one league win so far this season.
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He told ESPN: "If you ask: 'are you enjoying it?' I would say 'no.' I have the hope and the motivation to change that but I am not enjoying it because we're not winning. But I still have that aim of trying to work, to help teammates, to help the club and to learn something different so that those experiences can in some way help you in the future."
Yet Iniesta remains focusing on doing his best to make things better. He added: "Within the difficulties, the idea of achieving what we came here to do still fulfills me: to try to change the club, improve it so that it can take steps forward and find a stability not just for this season but in the future. Of course this league is not comparable to other leagues: it needs changes, it need to improve, and that's the role I came to play. I want to focus on what I can do. It is proving harder than we imagined when we came."
Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Iniesta has won all the major honours in the game but admitted on leaving Vissel Kobe that he wasn't ready to retire yet and wanted to keep playing football. The midfielder signed a one-year contract with Emirates Club, who were promoted to the UAE top flight last season, but this could well be his final campaign before he finally hangs up his boots.
DID YOU KNOW?
Iniesta may be finding life difficult at his new club but he has hit a major landmark since arriving. The former Barcelona star made his 1,000th senior career appearance at the start of the month against Ajman in a UAE Pro League clash.