Iniesta becomes first Spaniard to record an assist at three EUROs

Andres Iniesta Lujan is now Spain’s record setter for notching assists at least one in three UEFA European championships.

Iniesta made his EURO debut in 2008 in Austria and Switzerland; and although a stomach ailment somewhat hampered his performances in the group stages, he still played an integral part in the midfield.

He featured in the first two of Spain’s group-stage matches and proved an important part of the team, providing a particularly notable pass for David Villa’s second goal against Russia. That was his first assist in the European nations’ tournament.

In the semi-final against Russia, he played the entire 90 minutes and produced a fantastic cross that Xavi converted to open the scoring.

At the 2012 edition of the tournament, Iniesta was awarded man of the match for his performances in three different matches, including the final against Italy, which Spain won 4–0.

By winning the award, Iniesta became the only Spanish player to win the award at least once in each of Spain’s three consecutive successful tournaments. Iniesta was also chosen as the UEFA Euro Player of the tournament.

On Monday when Spain opened its 2016 account, Iniesta was again the player with the vital assist for Spain to eventually pip Czech Republic by a lone goal as the game edged towards the end.

Czech Republic stood firm for 87 minutes but the reigning European champions finally had their breakthrough and it was Gerard Pique with the goal. Iniesta whipped in a floated delivery and the Barcelona defender beat the offside trap to head past Cech.