5 legends who retired in the 2018/19 season

#5 Andrea Barzagli

Andrea Barzagli won 8 consecutive Serie A titles with Juventus

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.