Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Record
Daily Record
Sport
Mark McDougall

Andres Iniesta reveals Celtic 'honour' as he makes atmosphere claim

Andres Iniesta insists the Celtic Park atmosphere is among the best in the world and he was honoured to play there.

The Barcelona legend was part of the team who were beaten 2-1 by Celtic in 2012 when Tony Watt netted a late second.

Victor Wanyama had opened the scoring and Lionel Messi got a consolation in injury time.

It's one of Celtic's most famous European victories in recent times and Iniesta admits it's part of the reason he loves football so much.

The Hoops had very little of the ball with Barcelona dominating but Celtic defended brilliantly and Neil Lennon's men claimed the win.

In an interview with FourFourTwo, Iniesta was asked what the reaction was from players.

Celtic's Tony Watt celebrates after scoring what turned out to be the winning goal against Barcelona (SNS Group 0141 221 3602)

And he said: "I remember that well. One goal from a corner and another on the counter. Football is wonderful for reasons like these - the team who has the ball or the better players doesn’t always win.

"I’ll never forget playing against Celtic, either. The atmosphere is one of the best in the world. I was fortunate to play there several times and it was always so intense.

"It was an honour to play amid such incredible noise."

Iniesta was also asked to make a choice between Rangers boss Steven Gerrard, Paul Scholes or Frank Lampard.

But he stayed sitting on the fence and refused to put anyone ahead of the other.

He added: "That's difficult. Three brutal footballers. Three legends for their clubs, and three of the best players of all times.

"I have swapped shirts with all three of them. It means a lot to someone for whom football has been their life, and still is."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.