TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search results
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search resultsI feel liberated, says retiring Barca’s Pique
Defender collected 36 trophies in 18-year career, including four Champions League titles.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
R
etiring Barcelona defender Gerard Pique said he felt liberated when coach Xavi Hernandez took him off in the 83rd minute of the 2-0 win over Almeria on Saturday as he walked off in tears to a standing ovation from a packed Camp Nou.
The 35-year-old Pique announced on Friday that this would be his last game in the historic stadium as he decided to retire from soccer when LaLiga breaks for the World Cup next week.
"It was like taking a heavy burden off my back when I walked off the pitch," Pique told DAZN. "The last few months were really difficult and today I felt liberated. It was a lifetime experience that I'll take forever with me.
"I'm happy for giving it my all for this club. There were good and bad days, but I'm proud of it. I think I leave with a job well done."
Pique started the game as captain on Saturday in a season where he faced heavy criticism for his poor form and fell out of favor with coach Xavi Hernandez who reportedly asked him in the close season to leave or retire.
The signings of center backs Andreas Christensen, Jules Kounde, Eric Garcia and the breakout youngster Ronald Araujo has left Pique out of the picture at the age of 35.
There was the added pressure regarding his salary, reportedly the biggest at a club struggling financially and where every euro could affect their ability to sign or register new players facing the scrutiny of LaLiga's Financial Fair Play.
