Qatar tribune PA Media/dpa London Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny has announced his retirement from professional football. The 34-year-old explained his decision in an emotional Instagram post, where he admitted after an 18-year career that his heart is “not there anymore”. Szczesny began his career as a youth player with Arsenal after moving to north London at 16-years-old and made his senior debut for the club in September 2009.
After a loan stint at Brentford, Szczesny became a regular between the sticks for the Gunners for four seasons before joining Roma on loan. He finished his career with seven years at Juventus, where he won three Serie A titles, three Italian Cups and two Italian Super Cups before his contract was mutually terminated earlier this month. Szczesny earned 84 caps for Poland and described his career as the “journey of a lifetime”.
“I left Warsaw, my hometown in June of 2006 to join Arsenal with one dream - to make a living out of football,” Szczesny said. “Little did I know it would be a start of a journey of a lifetime. Little did I know that I would get to play for the biggest clubs in the world and represent my country 84 times.
“I didn’t just realize my dreams, I’ve arrived where my imagination wouldn’t even dare to take me. I played the game at the highest level with the best players in history without ever feeling inferior. “Everything that I have and everything that I am I owe to the beautiful game of football.
“But I.