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Jermaine Jones announces retirement
Former US national team midfielder Jermaine Jones has announced his retirement.
The 36-year-old, who most recently played for the LA Galaxy in MLS last season, confirmed his retirement with a post on Instagram.
Jones emerged as a midfield force early in his career, spending several seasons with Eintracht Frankfurt and then Schalke in Bundesliga.
The Frankfurt-born player earned 3 caps for Germany early in his career, but was able to switch to the United States due to his father's American citizenship.
Jones would go on to become an integral part of the US national team, earning 69 caps between 2010 and 2017.
He scored 4 goals for the US, most memorably a long-range strike against Portugal in the 2014 World Cup.
Following the 2014 World Cup, Jones moved to Major League Soccer, where he would play for the New England Revolution and Colorado Rapids in addition to the Galaxy.
Mavuba announces retirement
Former Girondins Bordeaux and France midfielder Rio Mavuba announced his retirement from soccer on Monday.
The 34-year-old, who was captain of Lille when the northern club won a rare league and cup double in 2011, is now set for a career in the media as a pundit with French television channel RMC Sport.
"I want to thank all the coaches who helped me since I was a kid", Mavuba said in a message posted on Twitter.
Despite earning only 13 caps for France, Mavuba underlined having "fulfilled one of my biggest dreams, of playing at the World Cup 40 years after my Dad, in 2014".
"My career is ending, but not my life. I hope to see you all soon", added Mavuba, who also played for Villarreal and Sparta Prague, his final professional club.
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Navarro confirms retirement
Former Spanish top flight defender Fernando Navarro has confirmed his retirement from football aged 36.
Capable of playing either in the heart of defence or as a left-back, Navarro is most famed for his stint at FC Sevilla between 2008 and 2015.
He made 35 first-team appearances for FC Barcelona across 5 years before enjoying 3 years at Real Mallorca in the top flight.
Navarro's form earned him a call-up to Spain's squad for the 2008 European Championships before joining Sevilla, spending the last 2 years of his career at Deportivo La Coruna.
The Catalan-native made a total of 573 professional appearances.
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Germany to host EURO 2024
Germany will host the 2024 European Championships after beating Turkey by 12 votes to 4 from UEFA's executive committee.
After a 2-horse race for EURO 2024, the German Football Association's (DFB) successful bid means they will host a major international tournament for the first time since the 2006 World Cup.
Germany received 12 votes from the 17-member committee, with 4 opting for Turkey and one abstention.
The 4-time world champions have won the Euros 3 times - 1972, 1980 and 1996 - and last staged the continental competition as West Germany in 1988.
Berlin's Olympic Stadium will host the Final of the 24-team tournament, which will feature 51 games over the course of June and July.
The other 9 host cities are Koln, Dortmund, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Gelsenkirchen, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munchen and Stuttgart.
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Jedinak announces Australia retirement
Australia international Mile Jedinak has announced his retirement from international football in order to focus on his club career.
The 34-year-old won 79 caps for his country and represented them in 3 World Cups, twice as captain.
Jedinak, who also led Australia to victory in the 2015 Asian Cup on home soil, scored 20 goals for the Socceroos.
But in a post on Instagram, Jedinak explained he wanted to prolong his career in club football, where he currently plays for Aston Villa in the Championship.
Akinfeev announces Russia retirement
Igor Akinfeev, whose penalty shoot-out saves helped host Russia eliminate Spain from the World Cup, has retired from the national team.
The 32-year-old Akinfeev said on Monday it was a "logical conclusion" after 111 appearances over 15 years. He made his debut within weeks of his 18th birthday.
Akinfeev said he wants to concentrate on playing for CSKA Moscow, which hosts Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday.
As Russia captain, Akinfeev helped the team exceed all expectations at this year's World Cup. His 2 penalty saves lifted Russia to a 4-3 shoot-out win over Spain in the round of 16 at Luzhniki Stadium.
Akinfeev's last national team appearance was a shoot-out loss to Croatia in the quarter-finals. He also helped Russia reach the semi-finals at the 2008 European Championship, the closest the team has come to a major trophy since the Soviet era.
In 2015, he was hospitalized after being hit in the head with a flare during crowd disturbances as Russia played Montenegro away.
Russia doesn't have a clear successor to Akinfeev. Of the 3 goalkeepers in the squad announced on Monday for upcoming Nations League games, Zenit Sankt Petersburg's Andrei Lunyov has 5 international appearances, while Anton Shunin and the Brazilian-born Guilherme have 2 each.
Akinfeev is the 4th Russia player to retire from the team after the World Cup, following defender Sergei Ignashevich and midfielders Yuri Zhirkov and Alexander Samedov.
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Van der Vaart confirms retirement
Rafael van der Vaart has confirmed his retirement from professional football following an illustrious career with the likes of Ajax, SV Hamburg, Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur.
The 35-year-old Dutchman has been on the books at Danish club Esbjerg since August, but has made just 3 appearances since his arrival, and is unwilling to waste his year-long contract in rehabilitation if he is unable to contribute to side following a recent training-ground injury.
The playmaker made his debut for Ajax as a 17-year-old, making 117 appearances and winning the Eredivisie title twice before moving to Hamburg in 2005. A hugely successful stay in Germany was followed by positive spells at Real Madrid and Tottenham, before returning to the Volksparkstadion for a second stint in 2012.
Since 2015, Van der Vaart has struggled for game time, taking in brief spells with Real Betis, Midtjylland, and finally Esbjerg.
Van der Vaart was handed his international debut by Louis van Gaal in 2001, and he went on to be capped 109 times by his country, putting him 4th in the Holland national team's all-time appearance charts.
He represented the Netherlands at 3 European Championships and 2 World Cups, and ended the 2010 Final against Spain as captain following the loss of Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
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Joe Cole announces retirement
Joe Cole has announced his retirement after 20 years as a professional footballer.
The 37-year-old, who won 56 caps for England and scored 10 goals for his country, was last playing for the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the USA.
After announcing his decision, he said: "After 20 years as a professional, the time has come for me to hang up my boots. It has been a dream come true. All of it".
"My favourite thing about being a professional footballer was the feeling you enjoy after coming back into the dressing room after a win. It will be difficult to replicate that but I'll always remember all of my former team-mates who I shared that experience with."
"I've been incredibly fortunate to have played with some of the very best players of my era and even more fortunate to call a lot of them friends."
"As a fan, I loved watching wholehearted, skilful players and this is what inspired me. I remembered what was special for me when I was sitting in the stands watching games and I tried to replicate this."
"I hope I was able to do this for some of the fans and people who have watched my games over the years."
"Winning trophies at Chelsea was particularly special for me. Those memories will live with me forever, as will the chance I had to share them with my family."
After calling time on a career in which he won 3 Premier League titles and 2 FA Cups - all with Chelsea - Cole said he wanted to move into coaching.
"Looking to the future, I want to stay involved in the game", he said.
"I feel I can offer a lot as a coach and have really enjoyed the opportunity to undertake some of these duties with the Rowdies."
"To lend my experience to help other young footballers achieve their dreams, just like I did, is a big passion of mine."
Cole ends his career having played over 700 matches and scored over 100 goals.
He began his career at West Ham, before moving to Chelsea. After 7 years at Stamford Bridge, he went on to play for Liverpool, Lille, Aston Villa, Coventry City and then Tampa Bay.
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Koulibaly, Salah & Mane nominated for African Player of the Year
The 5-man shortlist for the 2018 BBC African Footballer of the Year award has been announced.
This year's nominees are Medhi Benatia (Morocco), Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal), Sadio Mane (Senegal), Thomas Partey (Ghana) and Mohamed Salah (Egypt).
The result will be revealed in a programme on BBC World News on Friday, 14 December at 17:30.
The shortlist has been compiled by a panel of African football experts.
Liverpool forward Salah won last year's award, with previous winners including Jay-Jay Okocha, Michael Essien, Didier Drogba, Yaya Toure and Riyad Mahrez.
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Chiellini joins the 100 club
Giorgio Chiellini will become only the 7th player to reach 100 Italy caps, when he captains the Azzurri against Portugal tonight - 14 years to the day since his debut.
The Juventus defender made his debut on 17 November 2004 at the age of just 20, replacing Alessandro Parisi at half-time in a friendly against Finland.
Fabrizio Miccoli scored the winner after 33 minutes, with Chiello playing left-back in a team which also included future team-mate Andrea Barzagli.
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Drogba announces retirement from football
Former Chelsea and Ivory Coast forward Didier Drogba has announced his retirement as a player.
The 40-year-old scored 164 goals in 381 appearances in two spells at Stamford Bridge, helping them win the Premier League 4 times and the Champions League in 2012.
He also won 4 FA Cups and 3 League Cup trophies during his time in west London.
Drogba had most recently been playing in the USA with Phoenix Rising, the second-tier club at which he is a co-owner.
He had been expected to announce his retirement following the United Soccer League Cup Final defeat to Louisville City earlier this month and he has now taken to social media alongside pictures of himself as a young player to do just that.
Drogba played for Le Mans and En Avant de Guingamp before joining Olympique Marseille, who he left for Chelsea in 2004 for a then club-record £24 million deal.
He left Chelsea to join Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua in the summer of 2012, but 6 months later moved on to Galatasaray before returning to Stamford Bridge for a brief spell in July 2014.
A move to MLS franchise Montreal Impact followed and Drogba stayed in the US to take up the role at Phoenix.
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Salah named African Footballer of the Year
Egypt and Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has been voted BBC African Footballer of the Year for the second time in a row.
The 26-year-old beat Medhi Benatia, Kalidou Koulibaly, Sadio Mane and Thomas Partey to the prize.
The Premier League's Player of the Year scored 44 goals in 52 games for Liverpool last season.
As well as inspiring his club to the Champions League Final, Salah scored twice for Egypt at this year's World Cup, having netted both goals in the match which took his country to the tournament for the first time since 1990.
Salah becomes the first player since Nigerian Jay-Jay Okocha to win in consecutive years.
Mohamed Barakat (2005) and Mohamed Aboutrika (2008) are the other Egyptians to have won the award.
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Salah wins African footballer award for second time
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah has won the African Footballer of the Year award for the second year in succession.
The Egyptian forward was voted the winner at the Confederation of African Football's (CAF) 2018 awards ceremony in Dakar on Tuesday.
Salah beat his Liverpool team-mate Sadio Mane and Arsenal forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who play for Senegal and Gabon respectively, to the prize.
He edged the same 2 players last year in a vote which is decided by the technical directors and head coaches of 56 CAF member associations.
Aubameyang has finished in the top 3 on 5 occasions, winning once in 2015.
It was a good day for Egyptian football all round, with Egypt being awarded the right to host the 2019 African Cup of Nations.
Cameroon was scheduled to host this summer's tournament but it was stripped of the honour in November due to slow preparations.
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Muller, Hummels & Boateng axed by Germany coach Low
Germany coach Joachim Low is not planning to call up world champions Thomas Muller, Jerome Boateng and Mats Hummels any longer, saying the team needs to look to the future.
The Bayern Munchen trio were part of the 2014 World Cup-winning team but the Germans crashed out of the 2018 World Cup in the group stages, their earliest exit in 80 years.
All 3 have also struggled for form this season and were informed in person by Low, who travelled to Munchen to personally explain his decision.
With close to 250 international appearances between them, Hummels (70 caps), Muller (100 caps) and Boateng (76 caps) were part of the same generation.
Hummels and Boateng, both 30-year-old, played together in the 2009 U21 European championship triumph as Germany started to reap the first rewards of a major and sustained investment in youth players that had started 7 years earlier.
They all graduated to the senior team and took part in the 2010 World Cup where Germany's youngest tournament team in 76 years reached the semi-finals with an exciting run that included wins over England and Argentina.
Muller, 29-year-old, has scored 10 goals at World Cups, winning the Golden Boot in 2010. He was the second top scorer 4 years later with another 5 goals.
Last edited by beavis; 21-03-2019 at 20:17.
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