Most games for United & Everton
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Marouane Fellaini announced his immediate retirement via Instagram. The 36-year-old midfielder is hanging up his football boots after a total of 18 years. At the beginning of November it was announced that the Belgian veteran was leaving the Chinese club Shandong Taishan after five years. It was then said that Fellaini was on the market as a free transfer player and was ready for a new chapter. This will no longer happen.
“What an incredible journey this has been! I am so grateful to have been able to play the sport I love at the highest level. I am proud to have represented Standard (Liège) in Belgium, Everton and Manchester United in the UK and Shandong Taishan in China. “It was an honor to have played for the Belgian national team at the 2008 Olympic Games, the 2016 European Championships and the 2014 and 2018 World Cups,” wrote Fellaini.
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“I have played in front of the best fans in the world and would like to take this moment to thank them all for their unwavering support throughout my career. “Their encouragement and passion were a constant source of inspiration for me,” said the right-footed player, who received around 61 million euros in transfer fees over the course of his career, putting him in the top 10 of all Belgian footballers. “As I embark on this new chapter in my life, I look forward to new challenges, but rest assured that I will continue to support the beautiful game in every way I can. See you soon!”
In China, Fellaini played 139 competitive games with 50 goals and twelve assists. “Perhaps because of his age, recovery was quite laborious after a game where it would normally take a day or two,” Shandong coach Kang-hee Choi was quoted as saying in Chinese media. The South Korean coach, under whom Fellaini scored ten goals in 23 games, expressed his understanding that the 87-time national player was withdrawing. At Everton FC and Manchester United, who once paid 21 million and more than 32 million euros respectively for the Belgian, Fellaini appeared on the pitch 177 times each. He recorded 59 goal involvements with the Blues and 34 with the “Red Devils”.
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