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Outside of a handful of admittedly huge games – the various play-offs across Europe, the finals of the Europa League and the UEFA Champions League – the 2018/19 season is practically over. And as all good things come to an end, the end of this football season has marked the end of the careers of some true legends.
From World Cup winners to Champions League heroes and club legends, the following 5 players have all hung up their boots at the end of 2018/19 – and will go on to be remembered as amongst the all-time greats in the game.
#1 Xavi
Along with Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta, perhaps no other player symbolises the Pep Guardiola-era Barcelona side that conquered the world more than Xavi. The Spanish midfield maestro – famed for his incredible range of passing and ability to dictate the flow of the game – spent an incredible 17 seasons at the Nou Camp before leaving in the summer of 2015 to finish his career in Qatar.
During his time with Barca, Xavi practically won it all. Produced by the famed La Masia academy, he broke into the Blaugrana first team in the late 1990s and became a key player under the tutelage of then-boss Louis van Gaal, winning his first LaLiga title in 1998/99. Xavi won two more league titles – as well as a first Champions League – under Frank Rijkaard, but he’ll always be intrinsically linked with the Guardiola regime at the Nou Camp.
Apparently considering a move to Bayern Munich following his starring role in Spain’s Euro 2008 triumph, Xavi’s mind was changed by Guardiola, who had taken over as Barcelona’s boss that summer, and it was his metronomic passing style that came to symbolise Pep’s tiki-taka revolution. Barca won a treble of LaLiga, the Copa del Rey and the Champions League in 2009/10, and soon became recognised as arguably the best club side in history.
More trophies followed for Xavi; two more league titles and another Champions League under Guardiola and then the same again under different bosses, as well as the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 with Spain.
Since leaving for Qatari side Al Saad in 2015 Xavi had largely faded from view, but with the announcement of his retirement this month he should go down as one of the all-time great midfielders.
#2 Petr Cech
Of the five players on this list, Petr Cech is the only one who may yet play one last game. There’s a chance the Arsenal goalkeeper may appear in their Europa League final against his former club Chelsea, but that feels unlikely given that Cech is reportedly about to make his way back to Stamford Bridge in a technical role when he hangs up his gloves in the summer.
Regardless of his role in the future, Cech will undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest goalkeepers in Premier League history. Signed by then-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho in the summer of 2004 for a fee of £7 million – the Czech international immediately broke records by keeping an unbelievable 24 clean sheets across the season in a Blues side that conceded just 15 goals.
Cech went on to win the Premier League title that season and then repeated the feat a further 3 times while at Stamford Bridge, also winning the FA Cup on 4 occasions, the EFL Cup on 3 occasions and in 2011/12, the Champions League. The final of that competition – against Bayern Munich - saw Cech save a penalty from Arjen Robben in normal time and another 2 penalties in the eventual shootout that saw Chelsea triumph.
After the emergence of Thibault Courtois at Chelsea, Cech moved to Arsenal in 2015 and immediately became their first choice keeper, too. Trophies were harder to come by for Cech at the Emirates but he still managed to pick up one more FA Cup in 2016/17 – coincidentally by beating Chelsea in the final.
Despite a less successful end to his career, though, he’ll definitely go down as one of the all-time great goalkeepers – one who was dependable until the very end.
#3 Robin van Persie
Dutch striker Robin van Persie may not have won as many trophies across his career as other legends – a single Premier League title in 2012/13 and a lone FA cup in 2004/05 stands as his only triumphs during 11 seasons in the Premier League – but arguably, he made the biggest impact of any single player on a side in the history of the competition when he moved from Arsenal to Manchester United in the summer of 2012.
Van Persie played in all 38 of United’s games in 2012/13 as they marched to their most recent Premier League title – the final one under the stewardship of the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson – and scored 26 goals, enough to win him the Golden Boot.
But it wasn’t just his goals that made an impact – it was his performances and the fact that so many times, he helped United to points they wouldn’t have got without him; the results of 14 games were changed beyond a reasonable doubt by his contribution.
While his first season at United was definitely RVP’s highest watermark, he was also brilliant for Arsenal for the majority of his 8 seasons there, and he signed off his time at the Emirates by delivering a phenomenal 30 goals in 38 Premier League games. His overall record at the Gunners? 132 goals in 278 games. And after leaving United in 2014/15, he had two productive stints at Fenerbahce and Feyenoord too.
Throw in his strong record on the international stage for the Netherlands – 50 goals in 102 games including the best goal of the 2014 World Cup, his flying header against Spain – and despite a lack of trophies to his name, van Persie must be considered one of the best strikers of his generation – and he’ll definitely be missed now he’s retired.
#4 Tim Cahill
Tim Cahill might not be as decorated as the other players on this list; his best accomplishment, in club football at least, was probably his Division II title with Millwall back in 2000/01. But ask any football fan from Australia and you’ll probably find that Cahill is as big a legend Down Under as any other player to appear for the Socceroos.
Largely playing as an attacking midfielder, Cahill debuted for Australia in 2004 and helped them to win that year’s OFC Nations Cup, before playing a pivotal role in the Aussies’ first World Cup qualification for over 30 years.
The 2006 tournament turned out to be a mild success for Australia as they reached the Round of 16, but it was a huge success for Cahill, as he became the first Australian to score a World Cup goal with a brace against Japan, enhancing his reputation heavily in the process.
Cahill would play in two more World Cups – 2010 and 2014 – and despite Australia failing to make it out of the group stage in either tournament, Cahill himself managed to score in both, with his goal against the Netherlands in the 2014 edition being one of the very best goals on offer that year. With 50 goals in 108 appearances for his country, Cahill remains Australia’s all-time top goalscorer.
Despite his club achievements being overshadowed by his international ones, Everton fans will always remember his famed celebration – shadow-boxing the corner flag – fondly too, as he spent 8 seasons at Goodison Park at the peak of his career. A true cult hero, it might be a while before Australia produces another player of his calibre.
#5 Andrea Barzagli
Most top-level players tend to begin to slow down by the time they reach their mid-30’s, and so it’s rare to see someone pushing 40 still plying their trade at the top level.
That wasn’t the case for defender Andrea Barzagli, though. The Italian international announced his retirement earlier in 2019 and hung up his boots last weekend at the ripe age of 38, but while he only made 7 appearances for Juventus in 2018/19, he managed 38 in 2017/18 – remarkable for a player of his age.
Barzagli had somewhat of a topsy-turvy career; in the early 2000s he made his name as a tough, no-nonsense defender with mid-level Serie A clubs like Palermo and Chievo before moving to Wolfsburg in Germany, and while he had success there – surprisingly winning the Bundesliga in 2008/09 – by the time he moved to Juventus in early 2011 he was already pushing 30.
But forming a rock-solid defence alongside fellow Italian stalwarts Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, Barzagli had an instant impact in his first full season with the Old Lady, as they won the 2011/12 Serie A title, in large part thanks to their impregnable back line. It was just the beginning of Juventus’ run of domination – which seems to be continuing – as Barzagli would end up lifting the title on 8 consecutive occasions.
For Italy, Barzagli won the 2006 World Cup, but due to poor performances in 2008, he was spared the Azzurri's blushes in their disastrous 2010 campaign. He returned to the side in time for Euro 2012 – and helped them make the final – and appeared in the 2014 World Cup and at Euro 2016, too.
Barzagli will go down as an all-time great Italian defender for longevity alone, and he feels like the type of player who Juve fans will probably miss most when they fully realise he’s gone.
