Eric Abidal Sign out from professional football
Former Lyon , Barcelona and France defender Eric Abidal has retired from professional football.
In a news conference in Athens on Friday (19th December), the 35-year-old said that he is retiring for "personal reasons".
He denied that he would be leaving Olympiacos to return to the Camp Nou.
"I have not received a contract offer (from FC Barcelona)," he said. "I have the same situation today with Olympiacos, so ok, this is it. In the near future I will be resting, and to enjoy my family, and after this being able to take decisions in order to start a new chapter in life."
On 15 March 2011, Barcelona announced that Abidal had been diagnosed with a tumour in his liver, and the player underwent surgery two days later. Citing privacy concerns as wished by the player, the club did not release additional information in regards to his condition. In response to the announcement, players and fans around the world dedicated well wishes to him on various social networking service and sports websites.
Abidal earned 67 caps for the French national team, his debut coming on 18 August 2004 in a friendly with Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was selected for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, playing all the games and minutes in the country's runner-up campaign as left back, with the exception of France's match against Togo, from which he was suspended after earning two yellow cards in the first two games. In the final against Italy, he scored his penalty shootout attempt.
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| ERIC ABIDAL |
In a news conference in Athens on Friday (19th December), the 35-year-old said that he is retiring for "personal reasons".
He denied that he would be leaving Olympiacos to return to the Camp Nou.
"I have not received a contract offer (from FC Barcelona)," he said. "I have the same situation today with Olympiacos, so ok, this is it. In the near future I will be resting, and to enjoy my family, and after this being able to take decisions in order to start a new chapter in life."
On 15 March 2011, Barcelona announced that Abidal had been diagnosed with a tumour in his liver, and the player underwent surgery two days later. Citing privacy concerns as wished by the player, the club did not release additional information in regards to his condition. In response to the announcement, players and fans around the world dedicated well wishes to him on various social networking service and sports websites.
Abidal earned 67 caps for the French national team, his debut coming on 18 August 2004 in a friendly with Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was selected for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, playing all the games and minutes in the country's runner-up campaign as left back, with the exception of France's match against Togo, from which he was suspended after earning two yellow cards in the first two games. In the final against Italy, he scored his penalty shootout attempt.
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