David Villa to reunite with Barcelona teammate Andres Iniesta at Vissel Kobe

Striker and midfielder won everything together as club and international teammates

Former Spain international David Villa holds a jersey of Vissel Kobe with Rakuten President and CEO Hiroshi Mikitani, owner of the Japanese soccer club, at a press conference in Kobe, western Japan, Saturday, Dec. 1, 2018. Villa will play for Vissel Kobe in the J1 League from the next season. (Junko Ozaki/Kyodo News via AP)
The National
Dec 01, 2018
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World Cup-winning striker David Villa will reunite with former Barcelona teammate Andres Iniesta after announcing his move to Japanese club Vissel Kobe.

Villa, 36, spent three years at Barca alongside midfielder Iniesta, winning two Primera Liga titles, the Copa del Rey, the Uefa Champions League, and the Fifa Club World Cup. Villa and Iniesta also won the 2008 European Championship and 2010 World Cup together with Spain.

The pair will now look to recapture past glories in the J-League after Villa confirmed his switch via video message.

"It's decided," he said. "I have a new destination. A great challenge awaits. New country. New culture. New team-mates. Hello Japan. Hello Vissel Kobe."

Villa's move to Japan comes after he said he would be leaving Major League Soccer side New York City FC after scoring 80 goals in 124 games.

Iniesta scored on Saturday as Kobe wrapped up their J League season with a 3-2 victory over Vegalta Sendai, finishing 10th in the 18-team league.

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