Iniesta says he wants to be recognized by his dedication on the pitch, not just the kind of gratitude people have for him. He still wanted to be a real factor in Spain's journey to Russia.
And last night, he confirmed his true wish, unfortunately in a way can not be sad.
Fernando Hierro did not fill Iniesta with the starting lineup. This is justified, as Iniesta has kicked in all three of the group stages and physical strength is a problem everyone sees. However, the unexpected before the game is the most obvious opportunities of Spain only really appear after Iniesta was launched. He entered the field in the 67th minute to replace Silva and before that Spain was completely overwhelmed by the home team, when Russia actively played the game and not very willing to attack. And all is just stalemate.
Iniesta's replacement was Inensio, and where the problem has arisen. Asensio is a mutant element with a superior left foot who can take advantage of the gap to finish well. But like Costa, he was completely lost in the Spanish system.
The overshadowing of the Spanish midfield not only helped to stretch the Russian squad, but it also made the squad more squeezed, as did all of Asensio and Costa was sealed off.
And it was Spain's memory of Iniesta's lackluster performance, as well as his classy shots. Unfortunately, Hierro has shown himself to be only a temporary coach. When Iniesta came on the field, perhaps the former legend himself did not think of changing the book at all, simply changing one to one.
Iniesta, of course, is better than Silva in creating the mutation in the system, but then just stop there. Asensio and Costa are still in limited spaces. Spain was lacking in the situation, while leaving two names above. And so the gameplay has improved in the last few minutes, but it is still lifeless as the statistics on the pass increase over time.
As a result, Spain was bruised and then failed to score on the 11 meter mark. Iniesta had a decisive match breakdown could not be more sad.
Spain has all the factors that can make a difference, but unfortunately a hasty choice like Hierro on the bench did not take full advantage of it. You were right when using the old-fashioned safety strategy, but its success story was too long, and the failure of the previous four years was still there. That does not take into account the key personnel have gone down a lot. This inadvertently caused Iniesta, a 34-year-old man, to shoulder the control of the ball into the old path. And of course not enough to do that.
Today's failure brought a heavy shock to Spanish football, but it was not a disaster. Soccer background is still well developed and the force is thick. Sadly, the conflicts are not enough to bring about a failed World Cup.
And Iniesta, an unrelated character, accidentally suffered the consequences. Unfortunately.
