Andres Iniesta, a legendary player for Barcelona, said on Thursday that he would leave Japanese club Vissel Kobe early but still plans to play at the age of 39.
The World Cup champion of Spain has a contract with Vissel that extends until the end of the year, but an emotional Iniesta said he would depart in July after playing little this year.
For Vissel, who are three points ahead of the competition at the top of the league, Iniesta has only made three substitute appearances totaling 38 minutes this season.
The master of midfield said he was unsure of his future step but ruled out retirement.
He has been mentioned in connection with a non-playing job at Barcelona and is widely regarded as one of the finest players of his age.
He said, stopping sometimes to wipe away tears, “First I want to complete my time here correctly and then see what possibilities are open to me.
“I want to continue competing before retiring while still in the game. I want to locate a location where I can someday retire since I can’t do that here.
After more than 600 games for Barcelona, where he won the Champions League four times and nine La Liga championships, Iniesta joined Vissel in 2018.
He agreed to a three-year contract with Vissel, which he later extended in May 2021, for a rumored $30 million yearly pay.
Iniesta won the local Emperor’s Cup in Japan in 2019 and guided Vissel to the Asian Champions League semifinals in 2020.
However, the squad was involved in a relegation fight last season and dismissed a number of managers before ultimately placing 13th in the league of 18 teams.
It was “one of the hardest decisions of my career,” according to Iniesta, to leave Vissel.
I had imagined retiring here, but circumstances haven’t worked out the way I wanted them to, he added.
“I’ve been working out hard for the past few months with the goal of helping the team, but I started to sense that the coach had different priorities.”
On June 6, Iniesta will represent Vissel versus Barcelona in a friendly match at Tokyo’s National Stadium.
On July 1, he will play his farewell J-League game at home against Consadole Sapporo.
