- ANTARA/REUTERS/GUGLIELMO MANGIAPANE
Roma – The Italian footballer, Giorgio Chiellini has announced on Tuesday his retirement from professional football. The 39-year-old had been playing at MLS side LAFC for the past 18 months, having joined from Juventus in the summer of 2022.
Chiellini played 45 times for LAFC over his season and a half in the United States winning the MLS Cup and Supporters’ Shield with them last year.
"You have been the most beautiful and intense journey of my life. You have been my everything. With you I have travelled a unique and unforgettable path," Chiellini wrote on X Platform, on Tuesday.
Bek Timnas Italia, Giorgio Chiellini
- Instagram: Giorgio Chiellini
"But now it is time to start new chapters, face new challenges and write further important and exciting pages of life," he added.
The defender had spent 18 years at Juventus before moving to LAFC, having joined from Livorno in 2004.
After spending a year on loan at Fiorentina, Chiellini returned to Juventus and enjoyed a hugely successful time in Turin, with his 561 matches leaving him third on the club’s all-time appearances list behind Gianluigi Buffon (685) and Alessandro Del Piero (705).
Chiellini was a key part of the Juventus side which won nine Serie A titles in a row between 2011-12 and 2019-20, adding a Serie B league win and five Coppa Italia triumphs to his trophy haul. The Italian also finished runner-up in the Champions League twice with Juventus, losing to Barcelona and Real Madrid in the 2015 and 2017 finals respectively.
Chiellini retired from international duty last summer, with the Finalissima at Wembley Stadium between reigning European champions Italy and Argentina, the South American champions, his final game for his country. He made his senior Italy debut in 2004 and won 117 caps.
