Andres Iniesta joins Vissel Kobe in deal financed by Barcelona sponsors Rakuten
Spanish legend ended 22-year career at Barca last week and has made the move to Japan charged with turning Vissel into the best side in Asia
ANDRES INIESTA has completed a move to Vissel Kobe - in a deal paid for by Barcelona sponsors Rakuten.
Barca legend Iniesta has agreed a two-year contract with the Japanese club just a week after he left the Nou Camp in emotional scenes.
The 34-year-old has been brought in by Vissel, owned by Rakuten chief Hiroshi Mikitani, charged with helping the club establish themselves as the best side in Asia.
He will also help impose a new structure of the club’s development programme, working with the youth team to improve the quality of young players coming through the system.
The Spanish legend became close friends with billionaire Mikitani after meeting through the Japanese tech firm’s commercial partnership with Barca.
And it is Mikitani who personally drove through the deal which will see Iniesta become the biggest foreign import in Japan since Gary Lineker joined Nagoya Grampus Eight in 1992.
The midfielder posted a picture of himself flying out to Japan with Mikitani yesterday where he completed the formalities of the move.
He wrote: "Heading to my new home with my friend."
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One of the driving forces behind the switch is a growing push in Japan to re-establish themselves as the top league in Asian football.
The huge money being pumped into the Chinese Super League has seen a series of big stars make the move to the country.
That has seen the profile of the J-League suffer globally, and officials believe Iniesta's arrival can re-ignite interest in the game in the country.
A Rakuten statement said: "Iniesta developed his football career through the FC Barcelona cantera, the club’s unique youth league system that fosters young players.
"His transfer to Vissel Kobe is not only expected to draw in fans from around Japan to see his world-class play style but is expected to inspire the team and contribute to the development of the next generation of players through the introduction of the Iniesta Methodology to the youth academy.
"Vissel Kobe, with its aim to become the number one club in Asia, also believes that the player’s entry into the club will energise football both in Japan and the whole of Asia.
"Through promotion related to Iniesta across multiple channels of the Rakuten Ecosystem, including Rakuten TV, Rakuten will work to build the fan base of Vissel Kobe and the J.League, Japan’s professional football league, both in Japan and overseas."