The former French international and Bayern Munich legend Franck Ribery announced on Friday his retirement from football at the age of 39, succumbing to a knee injury that kept him out of competition with Salernitana in the Italian league this season.
The winger, who was runner-up with France in the 2006 World Cup, had the best days of his career with Bayern, with whom he won over 12 years the league title 9 times and the European Champions League in 2013.
"The ball stops. The feelings inside me do not."
Frank Ribéry retires from football after an incredible career.
Thanks for the memories 👋@FrankRibery ||
#UCL pic.twitter.com/bgHoMMxdlc
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) October 21, 2022
He wrote through his accounts on social networking sites in 4 languages, "The ball stops. The feelings inside me do not," attached to a video in which he summarizes his career with the national team and the clubs he played for.
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A post shared by Franck Ribéry (@frankribery7)
Ribery has not played with Salernitana, who joined him in 2021 from Fiorentina, since the first stage of this season during the loss to Roma when he entered as a substitute, and rumors of his retirement have been rumored in recent weeks.
Il meglio del meglio di @FranckRibery in Viola 😍#ForzaViola #Fiorentina #ACFFiorentina pic.twitter.com/w3LlSu5Thh
— ACF Fiorentina (@acffiorentina) October 21, 2022
His agent, Davide Lippi, told AFP two weeks ago that it was "highly likely" he would put an end to his career.
Salernitana announced in a statement that he had reached a "joint agreement" to terminate the player's contract, stressing that he would remain at the club, but in order to play "another role".
Ribery began his professional career with Bologna in the year 2000, and moved between several clubs, most notably Marseille (2005-2007) and Bayern Munich (2007-2019). Over the course of 22 years, he achieved 24 titles, 23 of which were with Bayern, in addition to the Turkish Cup with Galatasaray in 2005. .
Kısa süreli Galatasaray kariyerindeki harika performanslarınla hatırlayacağız seni Franck!
💛❤️
Bundan sonraki hayatında başarılar… @FranckRibery 💪#MerciFranck pic.twitter.com/C5cD00ZYOT
— Galatasaray SK (@GalatasaraySK) October 21, 2022
He came third in the ranking of the Golden Ball award in 2013 when he led Bayern to a historic trilogy, and many critics considered that he deserved it before Cristiano Ronaldo scored it, knowing that the French won the same year the "Wifa" award for the best player in Europe.
"What more can I do than win everything with Bayern? (To win the Ballon d'Or)," he said at the time.
The Bavarian club bid farewell to him on Friday, saying, "One of the best players in our history put an end to his amazing career, thank you for everything...a legend."
In 425 games for Bayern, he scored 124 goals and 182 assists in all competitions.
"Today, despite my efforts in the last three months, the pain in my knee has worsened and the doctors were clear. I have no choice, I have to stop playing," the Frenchman added in his farewell message.
And the player (16 goals in 81 international matches) concluded, "This is the end of a season as a player and not my professional story. Make sure of that. I will see you again at the beginning of a beautiful new chapter."