Fernando Torres, who is known for his football careers at Liverpool, Chelsea and Atletico Madrid, has announced his retirement from the game.
Former Spanish international Fernando Torres has called time on his glittering football career. The striker took to Twitter, uploading a video, explaining the announcement while also stating that more details of his decision will be available during his press conference in Japan on the morning of June 23, 2019.
Fernando Torres has had a storied career with huge success at both club level and while representing Spain. Tasting success at a young age with the Under-16 and Under-19 Spanish teams at the European Championships 2001 and 2002 respectively, Torres carried his success over to the senior National setup as well.
I have something very important to announce. After 18 exciting years, the time has come to put an end to my football career. Next Sunday, the 23rd at 10:00AM, local time in Japan, I will have a press conference in Tokyo to explain all the details.See you there. pic.twitter.com/WrKnvRTUIu
— Fernando Torres (@Torres) June 21, 2019
Torres was part of arguably the most successful era for Spain, as the nation won back-to-back European Championships and the 2010 World Cup while being hailed for their eye-pleasing style of football.
At club level, Torres left Atletico Madrid early on in his career to move to Premier League giants Liverpool, wherein he etched his legacy as a fearsome striker. During his stay at Liverpool, the Spaniard scored 81 goals in 4 years. But, a lack of trophies saw him move to Chelsea in January, 2011.
Torres did grab trophies at Chelsea, with the club winning the FA Cup and the Champions League in 2011-12 while also adding the 2012-13 UEFA Europa League to their trophy cabinet. But, his form took a sharp dive and he struggled to score on a consistent basis, with the striker failing to lodge double digits in any league campaign for Chelsea.
After a short loan spell at AC Milan, Atletico Madrid came swooping in to bring Torres back to the Spanish capital. While Torres had a bit of a renaissance at his former club, he just wasn’t the same as before, with many claiming that the knee problems he suffered at Liverpool had a lasting effort on his ability henceforth.
In 2018, Torres joined Japanese side Sagan Tosu, where he has 4 goals in 28 games so far. The former Chelsea and Liverpool superstar though, has now announced his retirement and it will be interesting to see whether he stays in football in some capacity.
