Gareth broke the news via social media: “I was lucky to have practiced the sport I love. I can’t put into words what it was like to wear the national team shirt”
A month after Wales’ defeat in the group stage of the World Cup in Qatar, Gareth Bale has announced his retirement from football. Just a year after the news of his transfer to the USA, where he won the MLS championship with Giorgio Chiellini’s Los Angeles FC, the 33-year-old who was a protagonist in the Premier League and in La Liga has decided to hang up his boots for good.
social greeting
—
“After having made the necessary considerations, I announce my retirement from the national team and, more generally, from playing football – wrote Gareth on social media -. I feel lucky because I was able to practice the sport I love and, thanks to football, I have lived some of the best moments of my life. From my first touch of the ball with Southampton to my last touch in the United States, I am immensely grateful for everything that has happened to me during my journey at club level. Playing 111 matches with my national team and becoming its captain was a dream, which has turned into reality”.
five champions
—
After his 16-year-old debut with the Saints in the Championship, Bale has become a top player with the Tottenham shirt. Real Madrid saw in Gareth the right man to support Cristiano Ronaldo in a dream trident and, to snatch him from Spurs, they paid out almost 100 million. In Spain, Bale won five Champions Leagues and his adventure with the Blancos ended just a year ago: “I don’t know how I could show my gratitude towards all the people who have accompanied me on this journey – explained the Welshman – I feel indebted to many people, who have allowed me to change my life and have a career that I could never have imagined when I started playing football at the age of 9. At Southampton, Tottenham, Real Madrid and to LA FC, to all my coaches, managers, warehouse workers, teammates, fans and agents, to my friends and relatives, I want to say that their contribution over the years has been immeasurable.”
hello wales
—
Through his Instagram profile, Bale also published another message, addressed exclusively to his “Welsh family”. “The decision to retire from the national team was the longest and most difficult of my career. How can I express how I felt every time I put on the national team shirt? In words, I cannot do it. I know that every person involved in the Welsh football feels the magic and knows how I feel, without needing to put it into words. My experience with Wales has not only changed my life, it has helped me become the person I am today. I am honored to have been able to participate in the history of this country. For now I take a step back, but I will never be far from this team, which runs through my veins. After all, the Dragon on my shirt is all I need…”.
January 9, 2023 (change January 9, 2023 | 5:32 pm)
© REPRODUCTION RESERVED