With the return of Henry and Bojan, maybe it’s time for Guardiola to stop playing Iniesta on the left wing position and return him to the midfield position. The team is off to another great start in the league but there is still something missing from this team in terms of sharpness. The midfield has not been quite productive in terms of playmaking and providing that last killer pass with Iniesta out on the wing.  Iniesta too has not scored nor contributed much in terms of assists  in that position and none is more obvious that in the Champions League. Pep can now start Henry or Bojan there and shift Iniesta back to the midfield with Xavi.

The injuries to the likes of Henry, Bojan and Iniesta has hand cuffed the team at the start of the season where the performances have not been sharp. Thankfully Keita has risen in the absence of Iniesta in the league games with 6 goals and 2 assists. However, the return of Iniesta also spells the end of Keita as a starter. As much as he plays with three lungs and never stops running, Keita’s passing leaves much to be desired.  Iniesta and Xavi would strengthen the midfield and bring back that creative and killer instinct that seems to be missing from this season’s team.

Last season’s great encounter against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge showed how ineffective Iniesta is as a left winger. When Iniesta scored that great goal, he had just moved to his usual midfield position after Bojan came in for Busquets and played on the left wing position. Iniesta is best suited for the midfield where he can carry out many functions such as carve out defenses and keep possession going and take the occasional shot on goal. His performance in the Champions League final is proof that the midfield is where he belongs.

With the do or die game against Inter Milan next week, Guardiola  must start Ibrahimovic and Messi up front with either Henry, Bojan or even Pedro. The midfield should consist of Yaya, Xavi and Iniesta.  The defense will be a concern now that Abidal is out. Maxwell will have to really step up his game for the next few weeks. Just hope we don’t see Guardiola experiment with Jeffren and use him as the starting left back. Hopefully we don’t lose more players to injury in San Mames this weekend.