Barcelona: It was a day of departures as Barcelona captain Andres Iniesta lifted a ninth Liga title after his side beat Real Sociedad 1-0 Sunday in an emotional final game for the midfielder at the Nou Camp while Fernando Torres scored twice in his final game for Atletico Madrid.
Barca fans continued to sing Iniesta’s name when he returned to do a lap of honour. “Today is a difficult day. I have spent 22 marvellous years here and I’ve been so proud to defend and represent this badge, which for me is the best in the world,” Iniesta said, addressing Barca fans from the Nou Camp pitch.
Atletico meanwhile were given a guard of honour by Eibar’s players before kick-off after beating Olympique de Marseille 3-0 in Wednesday’s Europa League final, which was Torres’s first trophy with the club where he has spent the majority of his career.
Torres, who wore the captain’s armband in his final game, tapped into an empty net in the 42nd minute to cancel out Kike Garcia’s opener. The Spaniard then gave Atletico the lead on the hour mark, latching on to a through ball from Diego Costa and rounding the goalkeeper to score his 129th goal for the club.
“I have had the privilege to wear this shirt in over 400 games and it’s very tough to know that this is the final time,” said an emotional Torres, who made his debut for Atletico aged 17 in the 2000/01 season, leaving for Liverpool in 2007 but returning in 2015 after also playing for Chelsea and AC Milan.
“I’ve been asked many times why I support Atletico or why Atletico is different. It is different because it is home for me, that is why I returned,” the striker added.