Barcelona legend Andres Iniesta breaks silence on claims he supported Real Madrid following retirement from football

Iniesta retired from football earlier this week, bringing the curtain down on a trophy-laden career that saw him become a Barcelona legend. It has since been claimed by Spanish journalist Tomas Roncero that Iniesta could have joined Real Madrid in 2006, and that discussions had taken place over a pre-contract agreement, while he was playing at Camp Nou.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Roncero also claimed that Iniesta grew up as a fan of Barcelona’s eternal rivals, and that has now been firmly rebuked by the iconic midfielder. He has claimed that the journalist, quite simply, is wrong.

  WHAT INIESTA SAID

  Iniesta told AS: “Things have been said that are not true, like that I signed pre-contracts with Real Madrid. Let him get over it.”

  Asked about whether he was a fan of the club, he replied: “No, definitely not.”

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  WHAT NEXT?

  It remains to be seen if Iniesta plans to move into coaching now that he has retired, but he will hope to have put an end to any speculation that he once dreamed of wearing white, instead of red and blue.