TODAY (Wednesday, May 11), footballing superstar Andres Iniesta celebrates his 38th birthday.

Born in the Spanish village of Fuentealbilla in 1984, the midfielder is currently in his fourth season at Japanese club Vissel Kobe.

Iniesta’s parents were friends of a youth coach from footballing giants Barcelona, who persuaded them to send their then 12-year-old son to Catalonia to train with the club’s youth academy.

The player made his first team debut at the Camp Nou in 2002, spending 16 years at the club. During his time there, he made 442 appearances, scoring 35 goals. He featured in nine league winning seasons, winning four Champions League medals.

Iniesta also earned 131 caps for the Spanish national squad. He secured his place as a national hero at the 2010 World Cup final when his injury time goal against the Netherlands secured a 2-1 win for the Spaniards, resulting in the nation winning the tournament for the first time.

The footballing season in England is drawing to a close, with Carlisle United’s miraculous great escape from Football League relegation secured thanks to the return of Paul Simpson as manager.

The Premier League is heating up, with both Manchester City and Liverpool both capable of being named champions with three matches left to play. Pep Guardiola’s City are just three points ahead of Liverpool, with a maximum of nine points left to grab.

Jurgen Klopp’s Reds will also appear in this season’s Champions League final against Spanish giants Real Madrid, who knocked out Manchester City in an exciting 6-5 aggregate win at the start of the month.

English sides were also close to reaching finals in other European competitions, with West Ham failing to ensure a battle of Britain against Scottish side Rangers in the Europa League final after losing to Frankfurt and Leicester City succumbing to a 2-1 aggregate defeat in the Europa Conference League semi-final against Jose Mourinho’s Roma side.

Due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, the match, which was due to take place in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg, will be held at Paris’ Stade de France on Saturday, May 28.

In today’s nostalgia section, we look back at footballing moments from north Cumbria over the years. Take a look to see if you recognise anyone.