5 eras that came to an end in the 2017/18 season

#4 Xabi Prieto gets the perfect goodbye

Xabi Prieto spent 15 years with the Real Sociedad senior team

When Juventus were relegated for the Calciopoli scandal, many of their players were praised for staying with the club and saluted for their loyalty. They bounced back the very next season - but not all stories are fairy tales.

Real Sociedad were once relegated from La Liga to the Segunda División back in 2007. They took three years to return to the Spanish top flight, eventually becoming a mainstay since their return in 2010.

Through the ups and downs, their club captain Xabi Prieto stayed with the Basque club. The Spanish midfielder, who has been ever-present in the squad, averaged 35 league games a year until this season.

In April, the 34-year-old confirmed that he would be retiring at the end of the season and the club marked his final home game in a special way - they replaced the club's badge with a face of Prieto himself.

"Xabi has always played for the badge, therefore in his last game at Anoeta, Real Sociedad will take him for a day as the badge."

A fitting tribute to a true legend of the game!

#RealSociedad will replace their club crest with Xabi Prieto's face for their final game of the season as a tribute to the midfielder who is retiring at the end of the season.He spent his entire career at the club - even when they were relegated to the second division in 2007. pic.twitter.com/IlnhUSSKfN

— Sportskeeda Football (@SK_Football) May 11, 2018