Andres Iniesta leaves out Barcelona legend Lionel Messi when naming the 'five best players in history'

Barcelona and Spain legend Andres Iniesta overlooked Lionel Messi when asked to name the five best players in football history.

Iniesta is one of the finest midfielders of his generation having won multiple trophies during his illustrious career.

The Spaniard started out at Barcelona, going on to make over 670 appearances for the Catalan club. He also won nine La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues among other trophies.

Iniesta, alongside Xavi and Sergio Busquets, made up one of the best midfield trios of all time.

On the international stage, Iniesta is a two-time EURO winner and also tasted glory in the World Cup.

Iniesta played for Japanese club Vissel Kobe and United Arab Emirates side Emirates Club before retiring in 2024.

Recently, the 40-year-old was asked by TikToker ofmanny to select his five best players of all time, but surprisingly, Iniesta did not name the likes of Messi or arch rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

Instead, Iniesta picked out Michael Laudrup, Pep Guardiola, Xavi, David Silva and Santi Cazorla. You can watch the footage below.

In a previous interview, Iniesta revealed that Laudrup was one of his idols growing up alongside Guardiola.

He said: "Michael Laudrup is my idol from childhood.His technique and his beautiful play style, the way he attacked as a midfielder. I've been trying to be like him since I was a kid.

"Pep should also be on the list because he was a childhood hero alongside Laudrup."

On Xavi, Iniesta added: "I played with Xavi for a long time and I've watched him a lot on television. He is my ideal player because of how he can control games. He has the ability to provide quality passes in the right places and he is also a leader. He really is an ideal midfielder for me."

Aside from Iniesta, David Silva was also asked to pick, he chose Laudrup, Messi, Iniesta, Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Aguero.

Meanwhile, former Everton man Tim Cahill had Pele, Diego Maradona, Messi, Ronaldo and Ronaldo Nazario on his list.

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