NEW YORK: One of football’s most technically gifted midfielders, Andrea Pirlo, will call time on his career in December with the Italian set to retire when his New York City FC contract expires.
After vastly successful spells with Internazionale, AC Milan and later Juventus, the incredibly popular figure moved to the MLS in search of a new experience in football.
In an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport published on Sunday, the 38-year-old communicated his decision to retire at the expiry of his current contract.
“You realise that the time has come,” he explained.
“Every single day you have physical problems, you can’t train as you wish because there is always an issue. “At my age, that’s enough, you can’t go on forever, I will do something else.”
It seems bizarre, yet it wasn’t until the latter years of Pirlo’s career that he was truly appreciated across the continent, in a somewhat similar manner to Paul Scholes.
Having lifted the World Cup in 2006, the Brescia academy graduate enjoyed magnificent success throughout his time playing football, he will now look to give something back in another capacity.
“I will return to Italy in December, I’m going to give myself some time to decide what to do next,” he intimated.
“At 38 it is right to give young players the space to develop, I’m not angry, instead I will look to help my teammates and the coach.”