Gareth Bale has announced his retirement from club and international football at the age of 33 on Monday, bringing the curtain down on one of the most decorated careers in British football.
The former Tottenham and Real Madrid star, who made a record 111 appearances for Wales, led his country from the international football wilderness to two European Championships reaching the semi-finals of the Euro 2016 and a first World Cup since 1958.
Bale announced his retirement through a statement posted on social media.
“After careful and thoughtful consideration, I announce my immediate retirement from club and international football,” Bale said in a statement.
“I feel incredibly fortunate to have realised by dream of playing the sport I love. It has truly given me some of the best moments of my life. The highest of the highs over 17 seasons, that will be impossible to replicate, no matter what the next chapter has in store for me.”
Bale started his career at Southampton but made his name in the Premier League while playing for Tottenham, where he was named player of the year twice.
After his superb performance and scoring 31 goals for both his country and club, it was clear that it would be difficult for Tottenham to keep Bale at the club.
Real Madrid paid around $104 million to sign him in September 2013.
The highest achievement in Bale’s football career came in May 2018 when he scored twice in the 3-1 Champions League final victory against Liverpool, including a stunning overhead kick.
Bale also won three league titles in Spain but struggled to keep up with the momentum at Real Madrid as he suffered numerous injuries.
Real Madrid issued a statement saying they wanted to “show their appreciation, admiration and love for a legend of our club and world football.”
“He will forever be united to the history and legend of our club,” the club said.
Tottenham and Southampton congratulated Bale on an “incredible career” while LAFC also paid tribute to the football legend.
Source: News24 Sport, Sky Sport, SuperSport, Eyewitness News, image from Twitter: @ESPNFC